Social Life Cycle Assessment of Innovative Products from Solar Evaporation Iberian Saltworks: A Descriptive Approach to the Implementation of Halotolerant Crops and Microorganisms

Sara Gómez Lorenzo, María del Mar Cledera Castro, Katia Hueso Kortekaas and José Carlos Romero ()
Additional contact information
Sara Gómez Lorenzo: ICAI School of Engineering, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, 28015 Madrid, Spain
María del Mar Cledera Castro: ICAI School of Engineering, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, 28015 Madrid, Spain
Katia Hueso Kortekaas: ICAI School of Engineering, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, 28015 Madrid, Spain
José Carlos Romero: ICAI School of Engineering, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, 28015 Madrid, Spain

World, 2025, vol. 6, issue 2, 1-21

Abstract: Soil salinization and land abandonment pose significant socio-economic and environmental challenges, particularly in the Iberian Peninsula, where traditional saltworks and agricultural lands have been increasingly degraded. Innovative approaches, such as the implementation of halotolerant crops and microorganisms, offer a promising strategy to revitalize these underutilized areas. This study applies the Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) methodology to evaluate the socio-economic benefits of halotolerant agriculture in abandoned saltworks and salinized lands. Data were collected through interviews with key stakeholders, literature reviews, and case studies of four enterprises actively engaged in sustainable salina restoration. Key social indicators, including employment creation, community participation, and cultural heritage conservation, were assessed using an expert-based weighting system. The findings indicate that enterprises involved in these initiatives demonstrated strong contributions to local economic resilience and cultural heritage preservation. However, challenges related to scalability and external economic influences remain key considerations. These results highlight the potential of biosaline agriculture as a viable solution to address land abandonment and food security challenges, while also contributing to rural socio-economic development.

Keywords: social life cycle assessment (S-LCA); halotolerant crops; microorganisms; salinized lands; sustainable agriculture; Iberian Peninsula saltworks; environmental sustainability; cultural heritage conservation; land degradation; food security (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G15 G17 G18 L21 L22 L25 L26 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 R51 R52 R58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4060/6/2/38/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4060/6/2/38/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jworld:v:6:y:2025:i:2:p:38-:d:1620720

Access Statistics for this article

World is currently edited by Ms. Cassie Hu

More articles in World from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().