1. Water & Agriculture in the Albacete Region Key Issues & Policies Prepared by Marisa Arpels & Kara Reeve

2. #1 What is the Future of Albacete Groundwater Management? Key Issues Maintenance of current plan Decrease water use to sustainable yield (within limitations of aquifer replenishment) Market Solution: – Market Solution: Increase user fee – Policy Solution1: Purchase land with water rights – Policy Solution2: Limit allocation per user If there are user fees, government policy could increase the price Create water bank (use below sustainable yield) Trading Drought or emergency planning

3. Questions for issue #1 Groundwater Management Do agricultural users pay a fee to access/use water? Is the government actively seeking to buy water rights and through what channels (policy efforts, etc.)? What is the industrial water use and how is it projected to change (ie: with construction of industrial polygons)? What is the municipal/residential water use (per capita) and how is it projected to change? What is the impact on regional natural resources (ie: lakes)?

4. #2 Surface Water Management Key Issues (More questions than answers): What is the legal allocation of surface water for Albacete? Are there plans to increase surface water allocation (ie: with the restoration of the Tajo)? What percentage of surface water is used for agriculture or other sectors in Albacete and how is it accounted (ie: is it part of the Junta Water Management Plan)?

5. #3 Agriculture Key Issues: Water: Changes due to decrease of water usage/allocation -changes in land cultivated -changes in type of crops -changes in irrigation (movement towards drip agriculture) Policies: Are there alternative sources of water that can be used for agriculture (ie: reuse of wastewater for agriculture)? Impact on land use and water usage due to policies promoting biodiesel or biofuels Impact of energy or other agricultural policies (ie: solar farms) Other: Demographic changes (rural to urban movement) and impact of land in cultivation

6. Existing Policies for Water Management Junta water collective – water allocation for farming (meters vs. formula approach) Spanish water distribution policy (implemented under Franco) Water law of 1985: changed water rights for land owners White Paper on water (national) – guiding document about managing agricultural demand instead of increasing water availability EU Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC EU Common Agricultural Policy