Land use change in Huerta de Valencia (2008-2013). Resilience and cultural landscapes

Abstract

[EN] The Huerta de Valencia is defined as the agricultural plane irrigated by Turia River that surrounds the city of Valencia, in the east coast of Spain. Its origins are dated in the 8th century with the arrival of the Muslim tribes in Spain and it is one of the last six “huerta” landscapes left in Europe. Traditionally, the Huerta has been in continuous evolution because of changes in agricultural management that answered to changes in the demands from society. But, since the second half of the twentieth century, landscape transformation has been faster and more extensive resulting in profound changes. This paper focuses on land use change in Huerta de Valencia with an emphasis on agricultural land abandonment. The objective is to assess spatial changes between 2008 and 2013 using aerial photograph interpretation and field survey. During this period, there has been a decrease in the pace of urban and infrastructure growth due to the economic crisis. However, land abandonment has become one of the most important factors for change in agricultural landscapes. The analysis of landscape evolution and historicity could give us some clues about the resilience and sustainability of certain cultural landscapes. This topic is relevant in certain landscapes such as la Huerta de Valencia.