Industrial development versus environmental conservation at local scale: a case study from southeastern Spain

Local scale has an important role in environmental management. In Spain, rapid industrialization has occurred in the last three decades, leading to substantial changes in socioeconomic relations and resulting in significant environmental degradation. This paper describes the environmental status of the township of Sax (Alicante, in southeast Spain), which has passed from agriculture to industrial manufacturing in 50 years. The human population has grown exponentially during the second half of the 20th century, with a 91% increase from 1955 to 1995, coinciding with strong growth in manufacturing (factories increased fivefold in the period 1955-1976) and important changes in the working population and land use. Illegal rubbish dumps, water pollution, forest fires, erosion, and degradation of wildlife habitats are the main outcomes of these dramatic socioeconomic and demographic changes. The administration has focused on the control of water pollution and waste management, while nongovernmental organizations have concentrated on the prevention of forest fires and the development of environmental education programs. These measures are insufficient to manage current environmental degradation, and an environmental management plan for the study area is discussed. Increasing effort in waste management and industrial wastewater control, changes in land-use policy, and the creation of an advisory committee to increase public participation in decision-making have been identified as environmental target objectives for the coming years.