Editing Geography of Spain (section)

==Drainage, floods, and water stress==
{{See also|List of rivers of Spain}}
[[Image:Spain-basins.png|thumb|upright=1.3|River basins of continental Spain]]
Of the roughly 1,800 rivers and streams in Spain, only the [[Tagus]] is more than 960 kilometers long; all but 90 extend less than 96 kilometers.<ref name=":1" /> These shorter rivers carry small volumes of water on an irregular basis, and they have seasonally dry river beds; however, when they do flow, they often are swift and torrential.<ref name=":1" /> Most major rivers rise in the mountains rimming or dissecting the Meseta Central and flow westward across the plateau through [[Portugal]] to empty into the [[Atlantic Ocean]].<ref name=":1" /> One significant exception is the [[Ebro]], which flows eastward to the [[Mediterranean]].<ref name=":1" /> Rivers in the extreme northwest and in the narrow northern coastal plain drain directly into the Atlantic Ocean.<ref name=":1" /> The northwestern coastline is also truncated by rias, waterbodies similar to fjords.<ref name=":1" />

The major rivers flowing westward throughout the Meseta Central include the [[Duero]], the [[Tagus]], the [[Guadiana]], and the [[Guadalquivir]].<ref name=":1" /> The Rio Guadalquivir is one of the most significant rivers in Spain because it irrigates a fertile valley, thus creating a rich agricultural area, and because it is navigable inland, making Seville the only inland river port for ocean-going traffic in Spain.<ref name=":1" /> The major river in the northwest region is the [[Minho River|Miño]].<ref name=":1" />

[[El Atazar Dam]] is a major dam built near [[Madrid]] to provide a water supply.

=== Floods and erosion===
[[File:Riadadesantateresa.jpg|thumb|[[Santa Teresa flood]].]]
Certain Spanish regions can be considered vulnerable to both [[flooding]] and [[erosion]].<ref name="ec.europa.eu">{{Cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/documentation/studies/documents/spain_en.pdf|title = Publications-list}}</ref> 
* 15 October 1879, in Murcia, [[Santa Teresa flood]].
* 13–15 October 1957, in Valencia, torrential rain results in [[1957 Valencia flood|a devastating flood]], at least 81 people lost their lives.<ref>[http://www.abc.es/hemeroteca/historico-13-08-2007/abc/Valencia/hasta-aqui-llego-la-riada_164364057827.html Hasta aquí llegó la riada], ABC, 13 August 2007</ref>
* In 1982, the river [[Jucar]] ([[Valencia (province)|Valencia]], [[Spain]]) broke the Tous Reservoir causing a flood that killed 30 people.<ref>[http://hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com/preview/1982/10/21/pagina-1/32951257/pdf.html Diluvio en el País Valenciano], La Vanguardia, 21 October 1982, p1</ref>

=== Water stress===
{{See also|Water abstraction}}
[[Water stress]] or water lack, poses the greatest threat in Spain. [[Water scarcity]] is a significant issue in many regions throughout Spain and [[climate change]] may aggravate the problem, with longer periods of [[dry weather]]. Supply problems regularly occur in the [[Jucar basin]] during summer. In the [[Segura basin]], water scarcity has resulted in an increase of the water prices by 30% for households. Overall, the regions in the south-east of Spain are particularly vulnerable to [[water shortage]]s. Furthermore, large areas of the Mediterranean are affected by [[saltwater intrusion]].<ref name="ec.europa.eu"/>