Different behaviour and management of two littoral dunes in southern Spain

Abstract

The north-western coast of Cadiz (Spain) presents a variety of coastal engineering and coastal management problems whose solution is not an easy task due to the complexity of the parameters involved. Two cases of dune zone management in this a rea are described in this paper. Punta Candor beach, a very popular recreational area in Rota municipality, experiences one of the highest dune erosion rates in Spain of more than 1 m/yr. In order to address this coastal degradation, the Atlantic Andalusian Coastal District has performed beach and dune restoration planning, described in this paper as an example of sustainable coastal management. The Valdevaqueros dune area also represents animportant recreational zone. However, after the Spanish Shore Act was approved in 1988, sand extraction was prohibited, and the system began to lose stability resulting in landward dune invasion. As in the previous case, an integrated study of the management alternatives is also presented for the Valdevaqueros dune area, considering all of the problems involved: dune degradation, invasion of the Punta Paloma road by the mobile dunes, excessive recreational pressure on the dune area and adjacent lagoon, parking lot resettlements, and undesirable land use in the surroundings. In particular, a cost-benefit analysis for the different alternatives was carried out regarding the road-dune interaction.