Usos, Crecimiento Diversificación de los Espacios Portuarios de la Pesca en Galicia (España)

Abstract

Over the last three decades, in a context of overexploitation of marine resources in a large part of the world’s seas and oceans, and of crisis and restructuring of fishing activity in Spain, there has nevertheless been a notable growth in facilities and equipment in port areas specialising in this activity. This is partly due to the availability of funds from the successive financial instruments of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). This paper therefore examines the impact of the CFP on the growth of port area, equipment and infrastructure. The case study pays special attention to the situation of two ports in Galicia (Spain), analysing their growth process, and changes in land use, through data provided by the Spanish Land Use Information System (SIOSE), photointerpretation and field work. The aim of the paper is to present a forecast of the results regarding the role of European funds in port growth from the mid-1990s to 2014, in the framework of a research that continues to analyse the investment of public funds in ports up to the present day. The results reveal significant port growth at the same time as a reduction in the number, capacity and power of the fishing fleet (SGP, 2021). The authors underline the role played by the CFP in this growth, but also the absence of a master plan to guide investments at regional level, as well as of port spatial planning instruments to harmonise their increasing diversification.