Agricultural Land Use and Fishing Practices in Spain and EU
Forms of Agricultural Land Use
1. Cultivated Lands:
- Types of Farming: Crops, bushes, and trees.
- Variety:
- Monoculture: Where a single product is grown (specialization).
- Polyculture: Where different products are grown.
- Performance:
- Extensive Farming: Large areas with low crop yields.
- Intensive Farming: Maximum production in minimum arable land.
- Tillage Systems:
- Dry Farming: System of farming in areas with poor, dry soils.
- Irrigation: Intensive agriculture using artificial irrigation systems.
Division of Agricultural Areas
- According to Size:
- Latifundio: A large area of cultivated land.
- Minifundio: A small parcel, sometimes insufficient for family sustenance.
- Based on Form:
- Regular or irregular (depending on uniformity, influenced by terrain).
- Elongated (if parallel to an irrigation channel).
- Planned (around a central point).
- Based on Limits:
- Openfield: No physical boundaries between parcels.
- Bocage: Fields enclosed by hedges to increase production and profitability.
Land Ownership
- Direct Property: When the owner also operates their land.
- Lease: The owner leases the land for exploitation. The rent is fixed in money.
- Sharecropping: The owner rents their land but cannot choose the product or who exploits it.
- Collective Property: The land belongs to a community.
Landless Movement (Brazil)
Movement of landless Brazilian peasants who reclaim uncultivated land belonging to large landowners.
Evil Customs (Misuses)
Feudal laws applied by Catalan lords to their lands, against which peasants fought for abolition in the 15th century.
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
Aims to increase agricultural productivity by promoting technical progress, ensuring the correct use of natural resources, ensuring a fair standard of living for the agricultural population, stabilizing markets, ensuring the safety of provisions, and ensuring reasonable prices to consumers.
European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)
Ensures minimum prices for farmers’ incomes and provides subsidies for specific crops or livestock. It eliminates crops or herds when there is a surplus.
Fishing Systems
- Trawling: Dragging a net along the seabed to collect fish.
- Seine Fishing: Boats encircle schools of fish.
- Trap Fishing: Dropping a net over the fish.
- Gillnetting: Setting up a net barrier.
Types of Fishing
- Inshore Fishing: Practiced in places with low tides where shellfish are exposed.
- Coastal Fishing: Fishing without losing sight of land, typically going out in the morning and returning in the afternoon.
- Deep-Sea Fishing: Practiced far from the coast, aiming for large-scale exploitation of fishery resources.
Problems and Perspectives
- Depletion of Fisheries: Due to large, technologically advanced fishing fleets.
- Water Contamination: Destroys aquatic life.
Fishing in the EU
In the 19th century, the predominance of Atlantic fishing areas over Mediterranean ones began to be emphasized. In the 1960s, the increase in living standards allowed for greater fish consumption. The 1970s saw a rise in fish product prices due to the oil crisis, and the 200-mile territorial waters limit was imposed internationally. In recent decades, technology has led to port specialization. The EU’s task is to establish fishing quotas for member countries, regulate fishing techniques, and control the number of vessels.
Fishing in Spain
Spain is divided into eight regions: Cantabrian, Northeast, South Atlantic, South Mediterranean, East, North, Balearic, and Canary Islands. The Northeast maritime region is the most important, accounting for 85% of the total fleet. The most important ports are Algeciras and Huelva. Important fish species include cod and hake.
Fishing in Catalonia
It represents 0.25% of the total. This small percentage is due to the problems of the Mediterranean Sea, such as higher sea temperature and salinity. Fishermen have sought to increase production through technical improvements in extraction, conservation, and distribution methods. Investments are being made in aquaculture (fish farms). The fleet includes small and medium-sized boats. Fish species include horse mackerel, anchovy, mackerel, sardines, whiting, and sea bream.