Bad news for the natural capital of the Valencian Community. This region, which holds surface areas for crops and pastures, forest resources, protected zones, and energy and mineral assets, faces a troubling trend. As climate change accelerates, the protection of environmental resources becomes more critical, yet the Valencian Community shows a pronounced decline in its natural capital. A 2018 report from the Valencian Institute for Economic Research (IVIE) and the BBVA Foundation shows that the region accounted for 4.4 percent of Spain’s natural capital, down from 6.5 percent in 1995, marking a two-point drop in share over the period.
The document identifies this decline as a direct consequence of the Valencian Community being among the autonomous communities that reduced their natural capital the most during the analyzed years. Specifically, the region saw a decrease of 10.04 percent, a result that ranks it alongside Catalonia as one of the worst performers. In contrast, the national trend shows only a 0.41 percent decline for Spain as a whole, while neighboring regions such as Cantabria, Asturias, and Extremadura increased their natural resources with two-digit gains, reaching 14 percent in the first and 14 percent in the second case, respectively.
Demography
The Valencian Community also trails the per capita average due to its demographic dynamics over the last thirty years. While Spain’s per capita value of natural resources stood at over 9,100 euros in 2018, the Valencian Community registered only 3,833 euros per person, less than half the national figure. This reflects a 28 percent decrease since 1995, when the per capita value was 5,311 euros, compared with the Spanish average drop of 15 percent from 10,822 euros. Extremadura leads the rankings at 23,258 euros per capita, a notable improvement from 21,029 euros in 1995, illustrating regional disparities in resource wealth.
The IVIE and BBVA Foundation report also lays out the composition and evolution of natural resources in the Valencian Community. Currently, 71 percent of its natural capital is made up of plantations and pastures, a pattern consistent with a region dominated by citrus and irrigated agriculture. Still, this share has slipped from 73 percent three decades ago, signaling a two-point shift. The autonomy sits on par with the Canary Islands and remains below Andalusia at 76 percent and Murcia at 81 percent, yet it remains well above the national average of 59 percent.
Minerals
Forest resources constitute about a fifth of Valencia’s natural capital, roughly 20 percent, which trails the national average by about three points. Protected areas account for 8 percent, a figure roughly half the national average and placing the Valencian Community among the lower ranks in this area. Energy and mineral resources, meanwhile, show a minimal presence, roughly 0.84 percent away from the national average, with Andalusia showing the strongest position at 2.42 percent in this category. In this mix, the region’s overall natural capital value was estimated at about 467.558 billion euros for 2018, implying that the Valencian Community contributed around 20.5 billion euros to Spain’s total stock based on its 4.4 percent share.