Almost three weeks have passed since a DANA caused the pressing humanitarian crisis experienced by the southeast of the peninsula and, in particular, the province of Valencia. The tragedy has left more than 200 dead and many missing. It is still early to assess the full magnitude of the consequences of this natural disaster, but the floods, which have destroyed homes, cars and all types of premises, have also seriously affected the L’Albufera natural park and their crops. The environmental emergency thus leaves an uncertain scenario for farm workers and the citizens who benefit from its fruits.
“The main problem, obviously, is the human tragedy, but secondly there is also the tragedy of all means of life of those people,” he declares to Public Helena Morenospokesperson for Greenpeace Spain. Since the floods, the environmentalist points out that many crops remain waterloggedthat is, they are saturated by the amount of water in the soil, which prevents air from reaching the roots so that plants can breathe and produce energy.
The rice crop had already been harvested when DANA happened, so its harvest has been saved this year
The rice fields are some of the best-known fields in L’Albufera. Its harvesting takes place “between the months of September and October, so that at the time of the DANA, the rice crop was already harvested and has been saved from possible direct damage,” he explains to this medium. Lola Raigonprofessor of Edafology – the science of the soil – and Agricultural Chemistry at the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV).
“We must take into account that, due to the management of the Valencian rice field, the fields were already flooded prior to DANA. Now there has been an extra contribution of water with a lot of contamination, because it is water that has circulated through unhealthy areas such as industrial estates,” he clarifies in statements to this newspaper Helena CifreCoordinator of the Spanish Society of Organic Agriculture and Agroecology (EEAS).
L’Albufera farmers also work with lettuce, cabbage, chard or spinach. These plantations have suffered significant damage, “since the flood of water and other materials has direct and severe effects on the cropas a consequence of asphyxiation in the root zone,” says Raigón. “Other factors that can affect this affected area are the loss of fertile soil as a consequence of erosion or the greater incidence of fungal diseases as a consequence of the high humidity,” he adds.
Toxic fruits?
Although it seems that this year’s rice has been saved from contamination, Cifre recalls that, when it is planted again in May, “we will have to see if the land has managed to purify possible contaminants.” However, he regrets that the floods have been very damaging to citrus and persimmons: “All the orchard crops where DANA has passed have been completely lost“.
Helena Cifre, on DANA contamination in fruits: “They are analyzing sludge and waste and science will tell us”
For her part, the UPV professor considers particularly worrying “some contamination that may be produced by dragging toxic materials from factories and similar spaces, that have been dragged and that could affect the quality of the soil in the future.” In this sense, the coordinator of the SEAE points out that “the sludge and waste are being analyzed and science will tell us if it will contaminate the future fruits or not, and what capacity the lands will have to filter and purify.
“The risk of very strong erosion with soil loss, if there is no vegetation cover, is very great,” he warns. David Gonzalezmember of Sustraiak, a Basque cooperative for the design and implementation of sustainable projects in urban and rural spaces. In this sense, he emphasizes that floods can cause a significant loss of nutrientswhich affects both the quality of the crops and the resilience of the land.
Helena Moreno, from Greenpeace: “Small farms are in very complicated situations right now”
Moreno emphasizes that this is a “truly dramatic situation.” The Greenpeace spokesperson points out that “there are many small farms dedicated to growing fruits and vegetables, which are in very complicated situations right now.” This ecological disaster adds to the material losses of homes or cars. “If they don’t harvest what they have right now in the field, They will not have any type of income in the future either.“, alert.
“The conditions are quite dramatic,” insists the environmentalist. “Although the Government has announced that there will be aid, it is important that it reaches farm workers because, in addition, many of them do not have agricultural insurance“, which leaves these citizens in a situation of lack of protection.
The need to change the agricultural model
Behind this catastrophe a fundamental issue looms: the sustainability of the current mode of production in the agricultural field. “The hegemonic agricultural model is very intensive in the use of resources and, in addition, uses fertilizers or even oil, which worsens the consequences of climate change“Cifre remarks.
Lola Raigón: “It is necessary to change the relationship that humans have with nature”
In this sense, Raigón considers that “it is necessary to change the relationship that humans have with nature.” The professor advocates a transition “towards food production and towards an agricultural and livestock model less industrialized and more in line with natural cycles“.
González also defends “without a doubt” the need for a transformation in agriculture. “The current model is destroying the most important resource we have, which is the soil“, he argues. The expert points out that this way of working the field “has broken the mechanisms that the Mediterranean had for the release of excess heat,” which is partly the cause of the disaster that occurred.
“A change of productive paradigm is necessary based on ecological production, which reduces the use of oil or fertilizers, which favors the use of own and natural resourceswhich promotes the care of the earth and its biodiversity,” concludes Cifre.
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