Research staff from the Cavanilles Institute of the University of Valencia (UV) has revealed that the beaches of southern Valencia have lost 70% of their surface in the last 30 years.
Thanks to a novel methodology used in deserts, they have confirmed that the surface of three beaches south of the port of València (Pinedo, El Saler and La Garrofera) have gone from having 170 hectares of sand in the 1990s to 43 in 2022. The UV reported this Monday.
The methodology, with satellite images, is used to know the volume of sand in deserts and here it has been applied for the first time to beaches.
It is also noted that the greatest reduction was after the expansion of the port between 2010 and 2012, and that the restoration in 2023 has increased the sand surface to 112 hectares.
Researchers Juan M. Soria, Rebeca Pérez González and Juan Víctor have pointed out that "this methodology fills an important gap in current research."
"So far, specific monitoring of the sand layer on beaches has not been implemented using spectral indices designed for sand dunes. This novel application in coastal contexts opens a new perspective in the field of research," they added.
The study, published in the journal Urban Sciencie, shows a direct relationship between the expansion of the Port of València with the creation of the Juan Carlos I Royal Navy and the preparation for the sailing America's Cup tests and the reduction of surface area of the Beaches.
Due to the dynamics of marine currents (north-south) in this part of the Mediterranean, the beaches in the north of the large infrastructures grow, and those in the south lose sand.
The study area includes approximately 8 kilometers from the current mouth of the Turia River, south of the port of Valencia, to the Gola de Pujol.
The images from the Landsat-5, Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2 satellites confirm how the maintenance and improvement work during the years 2004-2010 as a result of LIFE projects "managed to artificially maintain the three beaches, until the new expansion of the Port wasted this effort," according to Juan M. Soria.
The aerial images also show that from 2013 to 2022, as a consequence of the effect of the expansion of the port and the reduction of rehabilitation activities in the area, there was a reduction of approximately 90 hectares of sand.
Specifically, between July 2013 and the same month of 2014, the sand surface was reduced from 54.63 hectares to 37.26 on Pinedo beach; from 37.08 to 23.04 in El Saler; and from 47.61 to 31.23 in La Garrofera.
On the contrary, the restoration actions at the end of 2023, with the contribution of sand, have made it possible to increase the surface, which has increased between September 7 and November 6 from 22.91 hectares to 42.49 in Pinedo, from 9.30 to 38.64 in El Saler, and from 11.73 to 31.77 in La Garrofera.
The images also show that, at the southern end of the restored area, in the Gola de Pujol, the construction of the northern dike has facilitated the settling of sand on both sides.
The work used 11 images for the period 1984-2013; 8 for the 2013-2015 phase and from 2015 to 2023 15 images have been used.
