Spain allocates 28.5 million euros for Doñana land renaturalization

The Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition, through the Biodiversity Foundation, has announced a provisional resolution to distribute 28.5 million euros in subsidies to 66 farmers near Doñana National Park.

The funding is intended to facilitate the renaturalization of more than 400 hectares of land, transitioning them away from irrigated agriculture. This initiative aims to reduce ecological pressure on the area, specifically by decreasing water demand on the local aquifer.

According to official data, the conversion of these 407 hectares is expected to reduce annual irrigation water consumption by 1.8 hm3. This represents a significant saving compared to the estimated 1.5 hm3 currently being irregularly extracted from the Doñana aquifer each year. The approved projects primarily involve land that previously hosted strawberry or red fruit greenhouses in areas such as Lucena del Puerto and Almonte.