Jose Navarro-Pedreño

• Soil scientist, environmentalist and geographer
• Professor at Miguel Hernández University of Elche

Rapid climate change is amplifying the frequency and severity of global flooding events. These floods induce declines in agricultural areas, water bodies, barren lands, precipitating diminished crop productivity due to habitat loss and constrained water availability. Conversely, urban sprawl, notably within high-risk flood zones, exhibits substanti...

Different countries face significant challenges in managing water-related natural hazards, such as floods and shortages, while ensuring adequate water quality and quantity to satisfy human needs and preserve ecosystems. Climate change projections exacerbate this situation by intensifying the hydrological cycle, resulting in substantial changes in p...

Boron (B) in soils originates from both natural and human sources, such as agriculture and industry, which contribute boron via fertilizers and irrigation water. Using treated wastewater (TWW) for irrigation is a strategy to address water scarcity in agriculture within arid areas like Tunisia; however, it introduces a risk of B contamination. Thus,...

Human activities have a major impact on ecosystems, causing significant changes in the environment. Human activities can lead to a significant alteration and reduction in the variety of species. In the last few decades, there has been a shift in the sustainable approach to land planning and management. This article introduces a novel model for asse...

Every minute, the world produces an astonishing 3825 tons of municipal solid waste, resulting in an annual accumulation totaling 2.02 billion tons. The projections for the year 2050 suggest that this figure could surpass 3.4 billion tons. In this regard, social awareness and responsibility are deemed of utmost importance when it comes to sustainabl...

The aim of the present study is to highlight the effect of two commonly used plastics, polyethylene (PE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), on the quality and health indices of soil. To this end, a pot experiment was carried out using two soils, one acidic and one alkaline. The soil samples were collected from rural areas of central and Northern...

The impact of Microplastic Pollution (MPs) on human health, the environment, economy, and society has been previously investigated. However, there is a lack of comprehensive understanding regarding specific areas that require urgent measures to address marine pollution. The accumulation of MPs in Mediterranean coastal envi ronments is particularl...

The number of city residents worldwide is increasing at the same that soil consumption around cities, which can be mitigated using technosols. Urban areas need to provide a healthy environment for residents, but this is threatened by climate change. Mitigating the adverse impacts of climate change does not involve one-size-fits-all global solutions...

Worldwide, over half of all preschool-aged children and two-thirds of non-pregnant women of reproductive age suffer from hidden hunger. This situation may worsen due to the expected increase in the world population and the effects of climate change. The objective of this paper is to conduct a review of the relationship between soil, plants, and hum...

This study aims to assess the amount of organic carbon stored in soils, as it is an intention of knowing the sustainable soil management, by using two common methods for determining soil organic matter (SOM), namely oxidation with acidified wet dichromate (Walkley–Black method-WB) and loss on ignition (LOI). The study was carried with soil samples...

Flash floods are dangerous and unpredictable. This study aimed to improve flash flood prediction in Algeria's Hodna Basin using advanced AI models and GIS (GeoAI). Each watershed exhibits unique characteristics that contribute to flooding, primarily driven by hydrological and topographic factors. To capture and incorporate these distinctive attribu...

Citizen science is an effective tool that unites ordinary citizens and scientists for a common cause. In particular, this tool enables ordinary citizens to participate in research and increases the likelihood of generating new knowledge. It is seen as the democratization of science. It is mainly applied in developed countries, and citizens usually...

Food waste (FW) has become a global concern, with an estimated 1.3 billion tonnes lost annually, costing about $1 trillion. Environmental and social consequences of FW are significant, contributing to 6% of European Unions’ greenhouse gasemissions and affecting global food security. FW occurs is a complex issue occurring at various stages of the fo...

Soil organic carbon (SOC) plays a key role in global warming mitigation. The type of SOC and the decomposition rate determine the organic matter storage in the soils. The environmental conditions, soil properties and land use and management are the main factors determining the ability of soil to store carbon. However, there are no common rules that...

This comprehensive document explores the multifaceted implications of food overproduction on soil sustainability, encompassing environmental, societal, and economic aspects. It delves into the global landscape of food production, highlighting key statistics and the leading countries in this domain. The European Union’s directives, strategies, and a...

The fashion industry is the world’s third most polluting industry. The environmental ramifications of the industry have expanded in the previous decade as a result of consumer waste and raw material depletion from producers. Furthermore, there is a major influence on all three sustainability pillars, including environmental (emissions, energy, wate...

Land use plays a crucial role in the stock of soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil nitrogen (SN). The aim of this study was to assess and characterize the effects of various soil management practices on the physicochemical properties of soil in a Mediterranean region in southeastern Spain. Texture, soil moisture, bulk density, pH, electrical conducti...

Managing large animal mortalities becomes challenging and potentially inappropriate, particularly within a livestock unit, due to the methods employed. These methods are not environmentally friendly, have the potential to spread diseases to both humans and animals, and do not align with the principles of promoting a circular economy within livestoc...

Agricultural residues are produced in large quantities and their management is an issue all over the world. Many of these residues consist of plant materials in different degrees of transformation, so returning them back to soil is a management option that closes loops in a circular economy context. The objective of this paper is to summarize curre...

The aim of this documentary review was to determine the level of scientific production on environmental analysis tools and certifications for sustainable cities and communities, or “Neighbourhood Sustainability Assessment Tools”, worldwide between the years 2016 and 2023, considering as a precedent the appearance of the SDG 2030 and SDG 11. The ana...

Open pit mining causes damage in natural and rural regions; that is why soil restoration is necessary in order to recovery soil–plant systems. The application of waste can be a good solution for rehabilitation, and it clearly complies with the circular economy and the zero-waste strategy. This study was carried out in a quarry restoration area in t...

There are several sustainability issues that the linear economy of today's society cannot adequately tackle (i.e. resource depletion, waste treatment, etc.). As a result, the scientific community and policymakers give high priority to the implementation of the circular economy concept. The sustainable development goals of the United Nations are in...

Although in water-deficient regions, agricultural runoff, drainage water or surplus irrigation water is often used, there are constraints related to its quality to be considered (salinity, nutrients and pollutants). Thus, it is necessary to treat surplus irrigation water considering the low-energy supply systems available to farmers. This work focu...

Potato is the most popular non-grain food crop in the world, known for its high yield, water efficiency and nutritional 30 value and consequently it can play a vital role in food security. Yet, the examination of the environmental impact 31 associated with potato production represents a gap in the field of agricultural production. The purpose of th...

Erosion can have a negative impact on the agricultural sustainability and grazing lands in the Mediterranean area, especially in northern Algeria. It is useful to map the spatial occurrence of erosion and identify susceptible erodible areas on large scale. The main objective of this research was to compare the performance of four machine learning t...

Coastline changes were analyzed considering the land cover types and the analysis of the causes that have determined these changes during the past decades. Through the overlapping of aerial photographs and GIS analysis, the results showed that the land surface increased with respect to the previous stage, gaining terrain to the sea, but this increm...

The fashion industry constitutes the third most polluting industry in the world. The environmental implications of the fashion industry have grown in the last decade due to the throw away habits of consumers as well as depletion of raw material from producers. Furthermore, there is significant impact on all three sustainability pillars with environ...

Soil erodibility is one of the most crucial factors used to estimate soil erosion by applying modeling techniques. Soil data from soil maps are commonly used to create maps of soil erodibility for soil conservation planning. This study analyzed the spatial variability of soil erodibility by using a digital elevation model (DTM) and surface soil sam...

Population growth leads to an increase in the demand for energy, water, and food as cities grow and urbanize. However, the Earth's limited resources are unable to meet these rising demands. Modern farming practices increase productivity, but waste resources and consume too much energy. Agricultural activities occupy 50 % of all habitable land. Afte...

The presence and persistence of pesticides in the environment are environmental problems of great concern due to the health implications for humans and wildlife. The persistence of DDT–DDE in a Mediterranean coastal plain where pesticides were widely used and were banned decades ago is the aim of this study. Different sources of analytical informat...

Humanity’s three main components are energy, food and clothing. Each of us, individually and collectively, contributes to climate change and CO 2 emissions, natural resource consumption, and social attitudes and behaviour. Global fashion trends are expected to increase in value from 1.5 trillion dollars in 2020 to around 2.25 trillion dollars by 20...

The sustainability of soils is a major concern because they provide multiple functions such as agricultural production, water filtration and biotope for living organisms. The sustainability of crops in an arid environment requires the study of the components of this environment. Our study is carried out in the region of Zelfana (northern Sahara), 6...

Member States of the European Union must ban burning arable stubble by 2023 and improve the recycling of organic waste into fertilizers and organic farming practices by 2030. The current lack of nutrients from soils and crops leads to food insecurity, human malnutrition and diseases. Consequently, innovative solutions are required, as technosols ar...

Soil nutrient imbalance is a global threat to food security and ecosystem sustainability but adding organic residues or constructing anthropogenic soils and technosols can optimize it. However, FAO considers organic residues not “risk-free”, mainly due to their heavy metal content. Despite the fact that applying pruning residues to soil is a worldw...

There is mainly a lack of boron (B) in soils with low amounts of organic matter and in acidic and sandy soils. This is especially true in irrigated land or humid regions, where leaching can occur. The results from studying the amount of available B will reveal the status of B in the soil of a specific plot of land. The experimentation was performed...

An appropriate handling and use of urban and agricultural biosolids on soils are the best means to protect them from erosion, prevent the loss of nutrients due to runoff and washing, and preserve and restore soil productivity. Heavy metal concentrations in biosolids are one of the decisive factors when using this type of waste on soil, due to poten...

The sustainability of soils is a major concern as they provide multiple functions such as agriculturalproduction, water filtration and biotope for livingorganisms. Crop sustainability in an arid environmentrequires the study of the components of this environment. Our work carried out in the region of Zelfana(Sahara Desert), 60 km far from the capit...

P-0653 Environmental surveillance and clinical assessment of SARS-CoV-2 epidemiology and variant prevalence in an urban area in Spain Veronica Chico1, Judith Sanchez2, Antonio Galiana2, Antonio Martinez-Murcia3, Maria del Mar Ortega-Villaizan1, Belen Almendro4, Jose Navarro-Pedreño4, Luis Perez1 1Instituto de Investigación Desarrollo e Innovación e...

Higher education institutions (HEIs) can be considered role models of small cities that contribute to the fight against climate change. Therefore, assessing their own carbon footprints (CFs) and drawing conclusions gives significance to this study. In this study, 77 CFs from 14 HEIs were obtained through a tool developed by the Spanish Government....

Junto al desarrollo de la universidad, las bibliotecas universitarias han sido parte consustancial de esta institución, no pudiendo disociarse el espacio bibliotecario de la propia universidad. El papel desempeñado por las bibliotecas ha cambiado lentamente a lo largo del tiempo. Inicialmente se han dedicado a atesorar volúmenes de textos escritos...

Energy, food and clothing are the three main components of humanity. Each one individually and all together contribute to climate change and CO2 emissions, to the consumption of natural resources, as well as influencing social attitude and behaviour. The global trends of the fashion industry are projected to expand in value from 1.5 trillion $ in 2...

This chapter gives an overview of the relations between microplastics and soils based on a deep review of the latest research, mainly centered in the last 10 years. Plastics are widely used materials and their degradation produces plastics of minor size (<5 mm), microplastics, that are persistent and appear distributed all over the world. A high in...

In this research we evaluated the feasibility of incorporating MSW fly ashes and copper slag in the manufacture of traditional ceramic materials, in addition to assessing the immobilization of As and Pb in tiles, linear contraction, bending strength and water absorption (WA), were measured. A decrease in the WA was obtained by increasing the additi...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Boron is a micronutrient of high importance, both for plant development and normal growth. The range between boron deficiency and toxicity is very narrow, which makes boron unique among the essential micronutrients. Boron adsorption is one of the most important factors determining the release and fixation of this micronut...

Soil salinity is the first real threat of soil degradation in drylands. This degradation will affect agricultural yields and thus accelerate the phenomenon of desertification. This study consisted mainly in knowing the movement of salts after two periods in an irrigated agricultural palm tree oasis influenced by an arid climate. The objective of th...

The precipitation of sparingly soluble calcium phosphate in calcareous soils decreases the bioavailability of macronutrients, which makes their addition by way of fertilisers necessary. Sludge resulting from treating urban wastewater does not only provide significant amounts of phosphorus, but also helps lower the pH, thus increasing its bioavailab...

Organic matter plays a key role to achieve sustainability in agricultural production because it possesses many desirable properties. Consequently, composting process (in general) is pointed out as an eco-friendly biochemical and sustainable method for the management of organic wastes. During composting, it is well known that microorganisms (includi...

Recent studies have found that the world is now producing over 2 billion tons of solid waste each year, with this number set to rise in the coming decades. Given the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to facilitate a peaceful and prosperous world, we need to consider how materials science research into recycling processes and wast...

Surface water pollution (as a result of pesticides) is a major problem, due to the negative impact on human health and ecosystems. The excessive use and persistence of surface water pollution in the environment may present a notable risk. In this article, DDT and its metabolite DDE hereafter, DDT–DDE), and a commonly used pesticide (herbicide) glyp...

Reservoirs play an important role in water management and are key elements for water supply. Monitoring is needed in order to guarantee the quantity and quality of stored water. However, this task is sometimes not easy. The objective of this study was to develop a procedure for predicting volume of stored water with remote sensing in water bodies u...

The Palm Grove of Elche and its irrigation systems are ten centuries old and is listed in UNESCO’s World Heritage lists. Combined use for irrigation, hydropower mainly for watermills and water supply to the people. Thermal regulation associated to urban agrosystem.

Soil salinity is considered the most serious socio-economic and environmental problem in arid and semi-arid regions. This studym was carried out at an oasis in Zelfana, aims to (1) assess the quality of water used for irrigation, (2) estimate soil salinity/sodicity and follow their spatio-temporal and vertical variations, (3) compare two geostatist...

The University Miguel Hernández of Elche was created in 1996 and its headquarters is located in the city of Elche. A new campus was developed where new buildings and infrastructures have been established for over 25 years in the north of the city. The university is growing, and the land cover/land use is changing, adapted to the new infrastructures...

Background and objectives: Open-pit mining is an important activity to obtain mineral resources that supply society with raw materials to improve people’s quality of life. However, this extractive activity causes negative environmental impacts and, it is therefore necessary to identify and evaluate these impacts in order to design preventive and co...

Transforming learning spaces has become a priority for many schools, not only for implementing emerging methodologies but also for sanitary reasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools struggle to find solutions for the lack of space in order to respect the required safety distance, especially public schools with a very tight budget and many admin...

The world population will grow up to 9.8 billion by 2050. The intensification in urban growth will occur on all continents and in all sizes of cities, especially in developing countries, experiencing a greater rising in urban agglomerations of 300,000 to 500,000 people, those of 500,000 to 1 million and those of 1 to 5 million, by 2035. In this way...

Tourism industry is strongly connected with economic growth and urban development especially in coastal areas. Circular economy and EU Green Deal are close ly related to this activity and tourism needs to adopt strategies to reduce wastes and use adequate manegement systems.

Agriculture drainage water (ADW) can be desalinized and could provide water resources for irrigation. The major concern is the excess of soluble salts in ADW. In this sense, it is possible to use reverse osmosis (RO) system plants to reduce salinity and provide irrigation water of high quality. Several parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity...

The environment is constantly exposed to a variety of chemical loads from natural and anthropogenic causes (xenobiotic substances). However, anthropogenic origin is the main source of xenobiotic substances, such as heavy metals in the environment. Moreover, the presence of these elements in water and soil has significant consequences because they a...

En las regiones áridas, los suelos cultivados presentan problemas como la presencia de costras calcáreas o de yeso y son en su mayoría salinos. La calidad del suelo es un elemento esencial para evaluar la sostenibilidad del desarrollo agrícola intensivo y adquiere una especial relevancia cuando los cultivos son los cereales, alimento básico en la...

La salinidad del suelo es un problema ambiental que afecta a nivel mundial, aunque principalmente a las zonas áridas y semiáridas, causando la degradación del suelo. La variabilidad espacial de la salinidad depende de varios factores: edáficos (características del suelo, permeabilidad, profundidad), calidad de las aguas (riego, subterráneas), topog...

La erosión ha estado moldeando la superficie terrestre y el hombre ha estado luchando con la erosión para proteger el suelo de la agresividad de la lluvia y la escorrentía (Lowdermilk, 1989). No fue hasta la década de 1940 que un investigador descubrió que en la energía desarrollada por la caída de las gotas de lluvia estaba el origen de la alterac...

El suelo es el recurso más importante del sistema terrestre. La calidad del suelo es un elemento esencial para evaluar la sostenibilidad del desarrollo agrícola. La agricultura causa degradación del suelo y modificación de sus propiedades. Los suelos de la zona sahariana de Argelia, plantean enormes problemas de desarrollo agrícola. Contienen sa...

Authors aim to carry out a bibliographic review as an initial approach to state of the art related to the quality of urban soils, as well as its possible link with human health. This concern arises from the need to highlight the consequences that soil could face, derived from the growth and aging of the population, as well as its predicted preferen...

The soil has lost organic matter in the past centuries. Adding organic matter to soils is one of the management practices applied to recover the levels of soil carbon of the past and to improve soil properties. Is it a good practice to reduce global warming? In fact, one of the practices promoted to combat climate change is increasing soil organic...

Tourism activities are considered, among others, the backbone of the local economies. However, tourism activities lead to adverse environmental impacts, especially in coastal zones. Coastal areas are considered and recognized as of strategic importance due to the fact that several activities take place, from leisure to business. At the same time, c...

The study evaluates pollution by Pb, Zn, and Cr, and a possible sustainable solution through phytoremediation technologies, in the surroundings of Haina, a very polluted area of the Dominican Republic. Soils and plants were analyzed at 11 sampling points. After sample processing, the elemental composition was analyzed by ICP-OES. Soil metal concent...

To measure “something that is not there”, is not easy and at the same time not fully understandable and perceived by the citizens. Several elements (such as, waste production, waste management cost, social attitude and behaviour, etc.) interrupt and disturb any strategy in the framework of waste management. Additionally, through the European Green...

Europe is considered one of the most attractive and safe prevalent tourist destinations in the entire world. Approximately half (47.4%) of European tourist visits occurred in coastal regions, defined “on the basis of and consist of local administrative units or municipalities that border the sea, or have at least half of their total surface area wi...

The soil has lost organic matter in the past centuries. Adding organic matter to soils is one of the management practices applied to recover the levels of soil carbon of the past. Is it a good practice to reduce global warming? In fact, one of the practices promoted to combat climate change is increasing soil organic matter. However, the addition o...

The precipitation of sparingly soluble calcium phosphate in calcareous soils decreases the bioavailability of macronutrients, which makes their addition by way of fertilisers necessary. Sludge resulting from treating urban wastewater does not only provide significant amounts of phosphorus, but also helps lower the pH, thus increasing its bioavail-a...

This study evaluates the effect on the density and porosity of three differently textured soils when they were subjected to different degrees of compaction, following the addition of two crushed vegetable residues, palm leaf and hay straw. Mixtures were prepared incorporating the plant residues to each soil following the proportions: 10%, 20%, 30%...

Soil salinity is considered the most serious socio-economic and environmental problem in arid and semi-arid regions. This study was done to estimate the soil salinity and monitor the changes in an irrigated palm grove (42 ha) that produces dates of a high quality. Topsoil samples (45 points), were taken during two different periods (May and Novembe...

Resumen. Esta compleja obra abarca un espacio de tiempo inacabado ya que nos lleva al año 2025, que le da el valor de la prospectiva. Es un estudio detallado y un análisis crítico de la sociedad valenciana que nos lleva a determinar lo que somos en la actualidad, como hemos evolucionado en estos últimos años y cuáles son los conflictos a los que te...

El agua es imprescindible para la vida pero, además, es un recurso necesario en cantidad y calidad apropiadas para permitir el desarrollo de una sociedad moderna y productiva. Los recursos hídricos son el soporte de la agricultura y de la industria, así como del sector terciario, en particular en lo que corresponde al turismo y al ocio. La provinc...

In the Region of Murcia, there are many abandoned quarries in which restoration processes have not been carried out, and there are others that have a restoration plan but soil rehabilitation has not been achieved. Open pit mining generates a great environmental impact in the area where the activity takes place since it alters the morphology of the...

Nowadays, anthropic pressure on the environment produces major changes in ecosystems, leading to the extinction of various species. This performances in the environment can completely modify the ecosystem. One of the transforming factors in the environment exerting great anthropic pressure, is the development of human infrastructures such as large...

The present paper deals with a wide range of issues related to the environmental quality in learning spaces, such as thermal and visual comfort, as well as energy efficiency. All of these issues fall under the umbrella of the UN Agenda 2030 and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Upon reviewing publications of past studies, interviews were conduc...

Cyanobacteria bloom events have been associated with eutrophication processes, along with hydrologic and climate factors. Missisquoi Bay is a portion of the Lake Champlain (USA-Canada) that is highly eutrophic and prone to cyanobacteria blooms and cyanotoxins. This study assessed the spatial-temporal influence of nutrients, turbidity and temperatur...

El compromiso con la preservación del patrimonio geológico y paleontológico ha constituido una prioridad para el Museo Paleontológico de Elche – Fundación Cidaris desde los inicios de su actividad. En este contexto se ha desarrollado una estrategia de trabajo (FOPALI) en el que la valoración patrimonial es concebida como una herramienta de gestión....

The association between learning spaces and new pedagogical approaches is a current issue. Research shows that the classical, more silent, master class is being bypassed by student centered methods with participative classes and active methodologies. Major efforts in teacher training are taken to help teachers implement these new approaches in thei...

El patrimonio es herencia y como tal, de ella destaca la herencia relevante, que comúnmente entendemos como patrimonio sin más. En el caso de Elche, existen de dos tipos de patrimonio de la humanidad que se perciben de forma distinta, siendo uno limitado en su presencia en el tiempo al ser una representación teatral (Misterio de Elche) y otro perma...

Water scarcity is a widespread problem in arid and semi-arid regions such as the western Mediterranean coastal areas. The irregularity of the precipitation generates frequent droughts that exacerbate the conflicts among agriculture, water supply and water demands for ecosystems maintenance. Besides, global climate models predict that climate change...

The performance of biomass char production and application systems depends strongly on feedstock characteristics, conversion techniques, and methods of char handling, transport, and utilization. Although several combinations of biomass resources, conversion processes, and applications have been reported in the literature, few studies are focused on...

A review of vegetation indices as applied to Landsat-TM and ETM+ multispectral data is presented. The review focuses on indices that have been developed to produce biophysical information about vegetation biomass/greenness, moisture and pigments.In addition, a set of biomass/greenness and moisture content indices are tested in a Mediterranean semia...

The use of composted sewage sludge (SW) and limestone outcrop residue (LR) as water filter systems has been tested. An experimental design based on the use of columns (0–30 cm) was used with both wastes under a heavy irrigation regime (2000 mL/week) for 12 weeks. Half of them were irrigated with nonsaline water (NS) and the others with saline water...

The great extent of degraded soils in southeast Spain makes it necessary to carry out restoration and rehabilitation strategies. In addition, the great amount of wastes produced need to be properly managed. Several types of wastes and amendments (organic and inorganic) can be applied for soil rehabilitation and land restoration. When large areas mu...