The Doñana we knew may never return: Why a wet winter isn't enough to save the Andalusian national park

Heavy rainfall over winter means that Doñana Park’s marshes are full once again. The hugely important Mediterranean wetland has seen birds and colour come flooding back after the dry season.

The latest census recorded 385,649 birds of 88 species in January, the best figures in years, alongside other welcome news such as a rise in Iberian Lynx cubs, as well as a positive wintering season for ducks and flamingoes. To an untrained eye, it might seem like the park has bounced back to normal.

However, spokesperson for SEO/BirdLife Carlos Dávila’s expert eye offers a more sobering reflection on the park's future, warning that this is just a brief respite for the park and deeper issues remain which can’t be ignored.

“I believe the Doñana we once knew will never return,” he told Sur in English. He blamed decades of aquifer overexploitation, water contamination and the rising climate crisis, all which have altered the park in ways that a good winter is unable to reverse.

Dávila believes that the focus should now be shifted from complete reversal to adaptation, to create a new model in order to protect what can still be saved, he stated that, “we need to accept the question of 'what Doñana can we have'?"

Far from a defeatist attitude, this is rather a call to action, a plea to reframe the way we respond to the park’s crises.

Doñana, situated mainly in Huelva, but with parts in Seville and Cadiz, remains one of Europe's most important wetlands, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1994 and a critical stopover for birds migrating between Europe and Africa.

The root of Doñana’s issue comes from deep underground, during seasons of drought it is almost entirely dependent on an aquifer - a system found below the wetlands that acts as a sponge to store water for the springs and wells.

However, these materials have been overexploited for decades and drawn upon at more than 120% of its natural recharge capacity. Dávila explained that, “Even if rainfall is abundant, if overexploitation continues, Doñana will not recover ecologically”, citing intensive agriculture and mass tourism at the nearby Matalascañas resort as principal exploiters of the resources.

Dávila also warned that, “the effects of climate change in this area are up to 20% greater than in the rest of the world, in the form of more intense and recurring droughts”. These droughts are worsened further by climate change fuelled phenomena known as evapotranspiration, a process in which heat draws water out of the soil before it can percolate down to recharge the aquifer.

The consequences of these changes can be seen in reports of decreased species diversity and striking absences including “50,000 fewer greylag geese over winter” in contrast with a creeping rise in the number of invasive species, such as the blue crab.

In 2023, political action was taken to protect the park, “The Doñana Agreement” saw the Spanish central government and the Andalusian government pledge €1.4 billion in order to stop irrigation, protecting the wetlands by paying farmers to seek out more sustainable farming methods.

Dávila explained that though the agreement is a step in the right direction, it is moving very slowly. He explained that despite resources and political will, its effects are “not yet visible on the ground”. A reason for this could be due to “a significant imbalance between the central government's firm commitment to sustainability and the regional government's tendency to maintain the current agricultural model.”

Despite a plethora of reasons to feel gloomy about Doñana's situation, the park's resilience this winter has offered an optimistic reminder of what is still worth fighting for. Dávila's call for a change in focus emphasises that the window for meaningful action is still open.

Rather than mourning what the park was, he urges people to work towards "a sustainable socio-economic model in the surrounding area, better use of resources, hydrological restoration, and the maintenance of ecosystem functionality."

SEO/BirdLife has set out a series of concrete demands for the administrations responsible for the park. The most urgent is the definitive closure of all illegal mining operations affecting the aquifer, not as a vague commitment, but backed by enforcement budgets and real sanctions. The organisation is also calling for an immediate freeze on new water extraction concessions, and for mandatory consumption controls on all legal wells, priced to reflect the true environmental cost.

Perhaps most striking is the call for Spain's coastal lagoons to be officially declared the first habitat in danger of disappearing in the country, a symbolic, significant step that would legally recognise what scientists have been warning for years.

“By August, the marsh will be dry again.” Dávila stated. The birds will disperse, the water will recede, and Doñana will once more be dependent on the increasingly scarce winter rains.

This is natural for the park but the changing conditions that allow nature to withstand it are not guaranteed until further concrete action is taken to protect aquifer supply.