An innovative option contract for allocating water in Inter-Basin Transfers: the case of the Tagus-Segura Transfer in Spain

The Tagus-Segura Transfer (TST), the largest water infrastructure in Spain, connects the Tagus basin’s headwaters and the Segura basin, one of the most water-stressed areas in Europe. The need to increase the minimum environmental flows in the Tagus River and to meet new urban demands has lead to the redefinition of the TST’s management rules, what will cause a reduction of transferable volumes to the Segura basin. After evaluating the effects of this change in the whole Tagus-Segura system, focusing on the availability of irrigation water in the Segura, the environmental flows in the Tagus and the economic impacts on both basins; we propose an innovative two-tranche option contract that could reduce the negative impacts of the modification of the Transfer’s management rule, and represents an institutional innovation with respect to previous inter-basin water trading. We evaluate this contract with respect to spot and non-market scenarios. Results show that the proposed contract would reduce the impact of a change in the transfer’s management rule on water availability in the recipient area

Capital social y territorio

La investigación en el campo del capital social, así como el desarrollo de mejores instrumentos y técnicas aplicadas a su análisis, mejorarán, previsiblemente, nuestro conocimiento sobre este tema, sobre los factores que lo determinan y sobre las dinámicas a través de las cuales el capital social influye en el desarrollo de los procesos económicos y sociales. Por tal motivo es interesante determinar qué papel tiene la Administración en la promoción del capital social y en qué medida éste, con el adecuado apoyo institucional, puede influir en el desarrollo a través de las políticas territoriales, entre otras. Como es bien sabido, la ciencia crece por sus límites y la multidisciplinariedad del concepto de capital social lo coloca, precisamente, en esos límites del conocimiento, siempre en proceso de ampliación y creación. La aportación de la Geografía, desde sus diferentes perspectivas, puede ayudar a enriquecer el análisis que se está realizando desde otras ciencias

Measuring Equity and social sustainability through accessibility to public services by public transport: the case of the Metropolian area of Valencia (Spain)

Spatial equity in complex spaces such as metropolitan areas is a very interesting subject for research, particularly in view of its enormous potential public policy applicability. An approach to the subject based on the population's access to essential public services (education, health care and social services) is proposed. Geographic Information System (GIS) tools have made a powerful contribution to the ease with which both spatial and statistical data can be handled. The study covers the Metropolitan Area of Valencia, in Spain. It is based on the location of public facilities and the population's ability to move around using public transport. Its objective is to give a general overview of the situation and point to problem zones, with the aim of suggesting answers for these that could help to improve social and spatial sustainability and equity in this metropolitan area

Skills Evaluation at the University: Experiences and Reflections in Two Geography Modules

AbstractThe goal of this text is to propose different innovative, skills-based assessment methodologies in two modules from different university degrees. In both cases, the complexity of the assessment was adjusted to both the institutional (as determined by Verifica –National Guide-and the Teacher's Guide) and social contexts (as determined by the students’ prior knowledge, their interest in the subject and expectations) through the coordinated use of different techniques that obtained information about the knowledge, skills and attitudes of the students throughout the course. The aim of this article is to reflect on the assessment process and propose new approaches that are better suited to the new institutional and social context

Claves para entender los efectos de la crisis económica actual en el modelo turístico valenciano

El turismo en la Comunidad Valenciana es una actividad económica de carácter estructural. Una de las características más evidentes del desarrollo turístico valenciano es su polarización espacial, con una elevada concentración del crecimiento en el litoral, a ello se une su carácter estacional, lo que junto con la primacía de la oferta extrahotelera, constituye la característica diferenciadora del turismo valenciano. Desde 2009, el análisis de la información estadística oficial nos muestra unas ligeras modificaciones en la demanda con claro impacto sobre la oferta (reducción del gasto por turista, aumento de las estancias de fines de semana, reducción de la estancia media, aumento del turismo nacional, reducción de la demanda de turismos alternativos -como es el rural-, aumento y concentración del turismo en la ciudad de Valencia, parque de segundas residencias sobredimensionado, etc.) y que supone un cierto cambio en sus características, con rasgos diferenciadores respecto a otros modelos regionales similares

PTS and PTSO, two organosulfur compounds from onion by‑products as a novel solution for plant disease and pest management

This research has been carried out within the project GRUPO OPERATIVO SALUD-OLIVAR from the Spanish Rural Development Program (2014-2020) funded by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and co-financed by 80% by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (FEADER) (Total investment 384.830,96 EUR). It has also received funding from European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant agreement no. 887281 (BIOVEXO).This study is part of the Industrial Doctorate of the doctoral student Ana Falcon Pineiro, granted by the State Research Agency of the Spanish Government, with the following reference: DIN2019-010792.Background Over the past decade, the great impact of agricultural crop diseases has generated considerable economic losses and has compromised the production of edible crops at a time when the world population is only expected to rise, leading to the search for new pest management strategies. Besides that, the environmental impact resulting from the continued use of chemical pesticides has led to the search for natural and sustainable alternatives. One of the existing solutions that currently stands out for its effectiveness is the use of bioactive plant extracts. This study aims to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of propyl propane thiosulfinate (PTS) and propyl propane thiosulfonate (PTSO), two organosulfur compounds (OSCs) derived from Allium cepa, against a wide range of target bacteria and fungi. To this end, various in vitro procedures were conducted as well as soil sanitization tests using sterile substrate inoculated with soil-borne pathogens. In addition, this study also evaluates the pesticidal activity of both compounds through in vitro mortality and repellence tests. Results PTS and PTSO revealed inhibition activity on all the pathogens tested, belonging to different taxonomic groups. Moreover, both significatively reduced the population of bacteria and fungi in soil. The quantification of active substances in soil carried out in parallel to the microbial quantification showed that their use reduces the risk of residue accumulation since they break down quickly when applied. The set of antimicrobial tests performed demonstrated that the antifungal effect of both compounds is higher than the bactericidal effect. Lastly, PTS and PTSO showed a concentration-dependent significant biocidal and repellent effect against aphids. Conclusions The results presented in this work demonstrate that both PTS and PTSO have a significant antimicrobial and pesticidal activity against the great majority of phytopathogens tested, being a promising tool to improve pest management in crops.Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodEuropean Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (FEADER)European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program 887281State Research Agency of the Spanish Government DIN2019‑01079

Las agencias de desarrollo local:: Evaluación y propuestas de futuro. El caso del área metropolitana de Valencia.

Development from the local perspective has become in recent years under study and reflection from different disciplines, as a result of growing interest of European cohesion policy. Entities in Spain which respond more direct and practical to promote local development are the Local Development Agencies. These entities have been operating since the 90�s, financed largely by funds from the EU. This article is an analysis of these agencies in the metropolitan area of Valencia in order to know what has been their evolution and to what extent have actually contributed to local development in an area with specific characteristics such as a metropolitan area. The analysis is based on a survey of local development agents in the area as well as personal interviews with qualified informants. The main conclusions are that the key role these agencies exercised in certain municipalities particularly dynamic, including the promotion of employment, may be at risk as a result of the current crisis, which further exacerbated the problems locally.El desarrollo desde la perspectiva local se ha convertido en los últimos años en objeto de estudio y reflexión desde distintas disciplinas, como resultado de un interés creciente por parte de la política europea de cohesión. Las entidades que en España responden de manera más directa y práctica a fomentar el desarrollo local son las Agencias de Desarrollo Local. Dichas entidades han venido funcionando desde los años 90, financiadas, en gran parte por fondos de la UE. En el presente artículo se realiza un análisis de estas agencias en el área metropolitana de Valencia con el fin de conocer cuál ha sido su evolución y en qué medida han contribuido realmente al desarrollo local en un área con unas características específicas como es un área metropolitana. El análisis se basa en una encuesta realizada a los agentes de desarrollo local del área así como entrevistas personales a informadores cualificados. Las principales conclusiones apuntan a que el papel clave que ejercieron estas agencias en determinados municipios especialmente dinámicos, en particular el fomento del empleo, puede estar en riesgo como consecuencia de la crisis actual, lo cual agudiza aún más los problemas a escala local

Oxidative Stress Associated with Chilling Injury in Immature Fruit: Postharvest Technological and Biotechnological Solutions

Immature, vegetable-like fruits are produced by crops of great economic importance, including cucumbers, zucchini, eggplants and bell peppers, among others. Because of their high respiration rates, associated with high rates of dehydration and metabolism, and their susceptibility to chilling injury (CI), vegetable fruits are highly perishable commodities, requiring particular storage conditions to avoid postharvest losses. This review focuses on the oxidative stress that affects the postharvest quality of vegetable fruits under chilling storage. We define the physiological and biochemical factors that are associated with the oxidative stress and the development of CI symptoms in these commodities, and discuss the different physical, chemical and biotechnological approaches that have been proposed to reduce oxidative stress while enhancing the chilling tolerance of vegetable fruits

Comparison of different water supply risk management tools for irrigators: option contracts and insurance

Irrigators must cope with the risk of not having enough water to meet crop demands. There are different tools for managing this risk, including water market mechanisms and insurance. Given the choice, farmers will opt for the tool that offers the greatest positive change in expected utility. This paper presents a theoretical assessment of farmers’ expected utility for two different water option contracts and a drought insurance policy. We analyze the conditions that determine farmers’ preferences for these instruments and perform a numerical application to a water-stressed Spanish region. Results show that farmers’ willingness to pay for the considered risk management tools are greater than the preliminary estimates of these instruments costs. This suggests that option contracts and insurance may help farmers manage water supply availability risks