Author(s): Eduardo Navarrete-Mazariegos; Fernando Delgado-Ramos; Fernando Rodriguez-Maldonado

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Keywords: Daptation; Nature-based solution; Ecosystem services; Mountain; Resilience

Abstract: La Alpujarra is a shire in the meridional slopes of Sierra Nevada range of mountains, in southern Spain. This region has particular conditions related to snow, rainfall and water management. New climate change scenarios show how vulnerable is this region to climate impacts, specially to those related to water scarcity and rise of temperature. Moreover, a complex mix of social clashes and demographic decrease are leading to cross-cutting effects that multiply those climate impacts. The ancient Middle-Aged ditches man-made network, called "acequias" and its hydraulic management technics represent one of the main hallmarks of Sierra Nevada. Beside pasture and orchards irrigation, the acequias traditionaly drove meltwater through the hillsides along contour lines reducing its speed and infiltrating water into the upper soil layer. Nowadays the management of this network arise as a nature-based solution to improve adaptation in these type of watersheds without other water regulation systems. Sierra Nevada National Park and Biosphere Reserve (UNESCO) and its rich biodiversity, hosting around 2100 different plant species, of which 65 are unique to the area, have much to thank to this network which helps to keep soil moisture in certain areas and to keep active springs during the long summer season. It can be said that the acequias constitute an important network in regulating the hydrological cycle of Sierra Nevada. The acequias contribute to set an anthropoecosystem and they are important in shaping the landscape, reducing erosion, helping to create a network of corridors of vegetation, maintaining habitats and microhabitats, deploying recreational pathways, recharging acuifers, creating pastures, etc. But the lack of profitability of this agricultural systems in the current economic context threaten many acequias and cultivation terraces and leads to a marginalization and partial abandonment of this network, with all its negative consecuencies. The Nechite river basin is a good example to study these watersheds due to the existence of resilient elements and its gradual demographic decline. This work presents the research results carried on in the Nechite watershed analyzing gauging stations discharge data, borne-drone images and modelling the potential of adaptation.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3850/IAHR-39WC2521711920221768

Year: 2022