Addressing the social effects of irrigated agriculture

Abstract

The expansion of irrigated agriculture in southeast Spain has given rise to an intense debate that has revolved around the economy vs. environment dichotomy, but which has not included social criteria. In order to contribute new perspectives to this debate, the aim of this study was to identify and make visible the social effects of irrigated agriculture, supported by a case study. The methodology adopted for this purpose was based on five data sources: a literature review, a newspaper archive analysis, a secondary data analysis, semi-structured interviews with stakeholders, and structured interviews with representatives of agricultural firms. The results were divided into three topic areas: (a) demography, revealing how the agricultural sector has transformed population dynamics; (b) employment and wealth distribution, showing on the one hand that the sector creates employment but that, on the other, precarious labour conditions have persisted; and (c) social responsibility and legitimacy, reflecting the reputational crisis experienced by the sector and demonstrating that the corporate responsibility measures applied to counter this, although growing in number, are still insufficient. The study thus goes beyond the traditional dichotomous debate, discussing social issues and identifying areas of responsibility for socially sustainable management of the agricultural sector.