7. Wetlands Associated to the Basaltic Plateaus: Range of Influence of the “Escoriales” and Wet Meadows Indexes

Based upon the data obtained in five study areas, this chapter quantifies the hydro-geomorphological relationships between the basaltic “escoriales” and the “mallines”, already conceptually exposed in Chap. 1. The influence area of the plateaus as a function of the maximum distance at which the wetlands are located with respect of the edge of the “escorial” permits to obtain values of “mallines” density. A “mallines” index is proposed, calculated as the relationship between the total area occupied by these ecosystems and the basaltic surface, which allows the estimation of the total surface of “mallines” present in the area in places in which they have not been surveyed as well as the total of wetlands developed in volcanic environments in both studied provinces. The volume of available water in each of the study areas is analyzed as well.