Potential impacts of Water Framework Directive on the environmental services associated with historical irrigation systems: A case study from Southern Spain

Abstract

The "historical irrigation systems" (HIS) have played a particular role in the ecological history of landscape, not only in southern Europe, but also in very different environmental regions across Europe. These systems, which are still operational in many places, provide important ecosystem services (see Figure 1), especially those that are located in mountain areas. However, the singularities of HIS are not addressed by the Water Framework Directive (WFD). WFD proposes mechanisms for sectorial and territorial integration (principle of subsidiarity), such as the River Basin Management Plans (RBMPs). Unfortunately, the implementation of RBMPs is threatening the HIS located in some river basins across Europe, such as those located in the `Sierra Nevada¿ region (Southern Spain), due to the adoption of measures aimed at increasing the water use efficiency of these systems