The growth in the number of studies applying and expanding the concepts of the water footprint and virtual water trade in Spain has generated a wealth of lessons and reflections about the scarcity, allocation, productive use, and management of water from the viewpoint of a semi-arid country. This paper reviews the evolution of this research field in Spain since its introduction in 2005 and reflects on its main contributions and issues of debate. It shows how these concepts can be useful tools for integrated water accounting and raising awareness, when used with certain precautions: (1) Supply-chain thinking, taking into account value chains and the implications of trade, generally ignored in water management, can help to address water scarcity issues and sustainable water use. (2) Green water accounting incorporates land use and soil management, which greatly influences hydrological functioning. (3) The grey water footprint indicator analyzes pollution from an ecosystem point of view and facilitates the understanding of the water quantity and quality relationship. (4) Apparent water productivity analysis, innovatively incorporated into Spanish studies, considers the economic and social aspects associated with water use. However, the decision-making context should be broader, contextualizing and complementing water information with other indicators.

中文翻译：

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水足迹和虚拟水交易：西班牙一个新研究领域的诞生和成长

在西班牙，应用和扩展水足迹和虚拟水贸易概念的研究数量的增加，从半科学的角度产生了大量关于水资源稀缺、分配、生产使用和管理的经验教训和反思。干旱的国家。本文回顾了西班牙这一研究领域自 2005 年推出以来的演变，并反思了其主要贡献和争论的问题。它展示了这些概念在采取某些预防措施时如何成为综合水资源核算和提高意识的有用工具：(1) 供应链思维，考虑到价值链和贸易的影响，在水资源管理中通常被忽视，可以帮助解决水资源短缺问题和可持续用水。(2) 绿水核算包括土地利用和土壤管理，这极大地影响了水文功能。(3)灰水足迹指标从生态系统的角度分析污染，便于理解水量和水质的关系。(4) 表观水生产力分析，创新地纳入西班牙研究，考虑与用水相关的经济和社会方面。然而，决策背景应该更广泛，将水信息与其他指标结合起来并加以补充。考虑与用水相关的经济和社会方面。然而，决策背景应该更广泛，将水信息与其他指标结合起来并加以补充。考虑与用水相关的经济和社会方面。然而，决策背景应该更广泛，将水信息与其他指标结合起来并加以补充。