Groundwater and Protected Natural Areas in Spain. The hydrogeological characterization of National Parks

This study identifies protected natural areas that are related to groundwater in Spain. The methodology used has been applied to the natural areas covered within the scope of the three legal frameworks established in Law 42/2007, 13 December 2007 on Natural Heritage and Biodiversity. These are as follows: (a) areas protected by the Spanish State or its Autonomous Communities; (b) areas protected by the Natura 2000 Network and (c) areas protected by international instruments. Within the first typology the Natural Parks, Natural Reserves, Natural Monuments and Protected Landscapes are analyzed. The second includes the protected areas of the Natura 2000 Network and the third the Wetlands of International Importance of the Ramsar Convention; natural sites of the World Heritage List; Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the north-east Atlantic (OSPAR); Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance (SPAMI); GEOparks declared by UNESCO; Biosphere Reserves declared by UNESCO and European Network of Biogenetic Reserve. Finally, a hydrogeological characterization of each of the 15 National Parks in Spain is carried out.The aim of the paper is to identify and propose a first catalogue of protected natural areas that have a relationship with groundwater either from recharging the aquifer or drainage through rivers, springs or wetlands.