Nature protection and biodiversity - Why care? (Spain)

Biodiversity loss affects all the world's biogeographical regions. This process is affecting all of the planet's terrestrial and marine ecosystems and, as a consequence, the natural resources on which the existence of human beings depends are in danger.

Spain has a substantial natural heritage and has EU's highest number of taxa (almost 80 000). It also has a high number of endemisms, especially in the Canary Islands. Likewise, it has one of EU's largest percentages of protected area (27.7 % of national territory), including both Protected Areas created under Spanish legislation and those included in the Natura 2000 network.

Spain's extensive coastline (over 10 000 km) hosts substantial marine and coastal environment. The coastal strip is also home to the majority of the country's population (44 % of inhabitants live in coastal municipalities that represent barely 7 % of national territory). Furthermore, the coastal strip is also used for a significant volume of economic activity (in 2009, 87 % of Spain's 45,4 million of foreign tourists spend their holidays on the coast). In addition, the country's extensive agricultural and forest areas (24.8 million ha of utilised agricultural area and 27.6 million ha of forest) contain a large number of agricultural, forest and transitional ecosystems that have emerged as a result of human activity within the natural environment.