Hydrogeological Setting of Las Loras UNESCO Global Geopark (Palencia-Burgos, Spain): State of Knowledge and Needs for Water Resources Sustainability Research

Las Loras UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp) is located in the contact between the southernmost sector of the Basque-Cantabrian Basin and the North of the Cenozoic Duero basin. The bedrock is mainly made up of carbonate aquifers, mainly limestones, dolomites, and marls. Hydrogeologically, these aquifers are shared by the Ebro basin (Páramo de Sedano y Lora groundwater body, ES091MSBT002) and the Duero basin (Quintanilla-Peñahorada-Las Loras groundwater body, ES020MSBT00400004), being of the order of 80% of the UGGp drained towards the latter. This work aims to present a state-of-the-art overview of the regional hydrogeological knowledge and identifies the main lines of work for a detailed hydrogeological characterization of the Las Loras UGGp. The work methodology, includes a bibliographic review of the materials published in various sources, both official and sources from other non-profit entities, that have contributed to regional and local knowledge in the region. The capture of data from official sources, mainly Duero River Basin Authority (CHD) and the IGME-CSIC databases, and their treatment, allowed the obtaining of a snapshot of the state of the aquifers on a regional scale. The results lead to the need for a hydrogeological study that includes recent trends and the assessment of the impact of global change on groundwater resources. Some elements of hydrogeological interest are identified as Sites of Geological Interest, and are compiled on Las Loras UGGp website. Other, potential new points are commented in this work. These results are part of the IGCP-730 project funded by UNESCO’s International Geosciences Program.