Assessing a 100 years impact of Utxesa's reservoir on local plant communities

Abstract

Pòster presentat al Congress on Industrial and Agricultural Canals. Lleida, 2014

We assessed the changes in vegetation in an arid area transformed into an artificial wetland in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula consequence of the construction of a dam in the early twentieth century. We evaluated the changes in the total area of the surrounding habitats. We used aerial photographs of the area which were taken in 1956, 1980 and 2008 to evaluate these changes. The results suggest some of these habitats emerged shortly after the end of construction of water infrastructure (100 years ago), remaining stable until now. A slightly increase of the total surface of the halophytic communities –which are included in the Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC– is observed.