Editing Valencia (section)

===Location===
[[File:Valencia, Spain.jpg|thumb|right|Valencia and surroundings as seen by the [[European Space Agency|ESA]]'s [[Sentinel-2]] satellite]]

Located on the eastern coast of the [[Iberian Peninsula]] and the western part of the [[Mediterranean Sea]], fronting the [[Gulf of Valencia]], Valencia lies on the highly fertile alluvial silts accumulated on the floodplain formed in the lower course of the [[Turia (river)|Turia River]].{{Sfn|Puncel Chornet|1999}} At its founding by the Romans in 138 BC, it stood on an alluvial plain of the Turia River several kilometers from the sea.<ref name="Monrabal2011">{{cite book |last1=Monrabal |first1=Josep Sorribes |title=Valencia, 1957-2007: De la riada a la Copa del América |year=2011 |publisher=Universitat de València |isbn=978-84-370-8260-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sRdbTyaOIgYC&pg=PA61 |language=es |access-date=15 November 2023 |archive-date=15 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231115224703/https://books.google.com/books?id=sRdbTyaOIgYC&pg=PA61 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Albufera]] lagoon, located about {{cvt|12|km|mi|0}} south of the city proper (and part of the municipality), was originally a saltwater lagoon, but since the severing of links to the sea, it has eventually become a freshwater lagoon, progressively decreasing in size.{{Sfn|Clemente Meoro|2008|p=1}} The lagoon and its environment are used for the cultivation of [[rice]] in [[paddy field]]s, and for hunting and fishing purposes.{{Sfn|Clemente Meoro|2008|p=1}}

The Valencia City Council bought the lake from the [[Monarchy of Spain|Crown of Spain]] for 1,072,980 [[Spanish peseta|pesetas]] in 1911,<ref name="Gonzálbez1960">{{cite book |author=Momblanch y Gonzálbez, Francisco de P. |title=Historia de la Albufera de Valencia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6QUrAQAAMAAJ |access-date=5 February 2013 |year=1960 |publisher=Excmo. Anuntamiento |page=301 |isbn=9788484840701 |archive-date=1 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101125315/http://books.google.com/books?id=6QUrAQAAMAAJ |url-status=live}}</ref> and today it forms the main portion of the ''[[Parc Natural de l'Albufera]]'' (Albufera Nature Reserve), with a surface area of {{convert|21,120|ha|acre}}. Because of its cultural, historical, and ecological value, it was declared a natural park in 1976.