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In the past two decades, the expression «sustainable spatial development» has been successfully incorporated into spatial planning documents, becoming a guiding principle thereof. This paper analyzes the integration of the principles of sustainability into Spanish spatial planning and assesses its practical outcomes. An analysis of legislation and regional plans has been conducted, focusing on four case studies (the Basque Country, Navarra, Andalucía and the Valencian Community) selected for the relevance of sustainability principles in their regional planning processes. Complementary information was gathered by interviewing key agents of spatial planning in those regions. According to the results, despite the good intentions embodied in plans and legislation, the integration of sustainability in regional spatial planning progresses slowly, and its practical outcomes are still barely visible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]