The introduction of water banks in Spain: perspectives and possibilities

In 1999, the Spanish Government reformed the Water Act in order to introduce some measures theoretically proposed to favour the transmission of the concessions that dictate water use rights. One of these measures is termed ‘water use rights exchange centre’ which is mainly prompted by the Central Administration. Recently, the constitution of these exchange centres has been approved in the Guadiana River, Júcar River and Segura River Basins. The Spanish Government announced that it expects to lay the foundations for the creation of future ‘Public Water Banks’. This paper seeks to analyse the current situation and the limits imposed by legislation related to concessions that have already been granted, as well as the characteristics of the proposed exchange centres and the available alternatives for the regulation of the new water banks.