Jan's Update

www.spain.fipe.org in English or www.spania.fipe.org in Norwegian.

43 new golf courses for Costa Blanca

The regional government for Valencia has adopted a law approving the construction of 43 new golf courses in the region. In 10 years the number of courses will rise from the present 22 to 65, with an increase in the yearly water consume of 24 m3.

The federation of golf players has greeted the plan, while the opposition party in the regional parliament is criticizing it.

From Valencia Life 27.7.5
URBANIZATIONS WARNED
Following a meeting yesterday of the executive committee of the Taibillacanals, which supply water to Alicante Province and part of Murcia, a brief statement revealed that none of the planned urbanizations in the area would be supplied with water, and that Taibilla only barely had enough to supply the existing demand. The statement added that these urbanizations could only possibly work after the Socialist Government had installed its much-heralded desalinization plants. The Committee also warned that the situation could ease after the plants came on line - 2008, and that any real urbanizing could only be planned after that date. Meanwhile the Valencian Superior Court of Justice yesterday temporarily suspended the urbanization plans for 552,000 square metres in the Armanello district of Benidorm. Yesterday's court decision meant that in effect the urbanizing that had been granted to Enrique Ortiz e Hijos S. A. is now put on hold after allegations presented by three other builders who were not awarded the contract.__________

PARCENT

Unos 600 residentes piden una moratoria para frenar 2.200 casas

El pueblo tiene 1.000 habitantes y pasaría a tener 7.000 y los vecinos avalan con sus firmas el rechazo a los planesV. X. C.Dos representantes del colectivo vecinal del Barranquet de Parcent, Joan Ripoll y Mark Harrison, han presentado un escrito en el consistorio acompañado de cerca de 600 firmas. En el documento le exigen a la alcaldesa del municipio, la popular Mari Carmen López, que rechace los proyectos urbanísticos presentados en la localidad y que pueden suponer la construcción de 2.200 nuevas viviendas. La petición de los residentes de Parcent se resume en dos puntos: «la declaración de una moratoria en todos los proyectos actuales para la construcción de nuevas urbanizaciones y que el PP cumpla su promesa electoral de redactar un nuevo Plan General, en un proceso de transparencia con todos los colectivos del pueblo».En los últimos meses se han presentado tres planes urbanísticos que en el peor de los casos sumarían las 2.200 viviendas. Uno de ellos, el de la mercantil Terres de l´Horta ocuparía 400.000 m 2 y es el que dispararía el municipio al mayor número de casas y de habitantes. Parcent tiene en la actualidad 1.000 vecinos y si se desarrollan los proyectos de las constructoras podría sumar hasta 6.000 residentes más.Mark Harrison, de la Asociación de Vecinos del Barranquet, señaló a INFORMACION que con el escrito pretenden que los ediles del gobierno local y de la oposición se conciencien y rechacen los planes y cumplan con la petición de moratoria y la redacción del Plan General. Harrison manifestó que tan importante como la construcción de estas urbanizaciones es la información que el consistorio debería brindar a los vecinos. «No es posible que cuatro personas del gobierno decidan el futuro de Parcent sin explicar lo que quieren hacer a los ciudadanos» arguyó el vecino. Respecto a la posibilidad de crear una agrupación de propietarios, para que no sea una gran constructora la que ejecute el plan, Joan Ripoll dijo que «no es posible ya que no queremos embarcarnos en una cosa en la que no creemos, nosotros apostamos porque se quede la superficie como está».MovilizacionesLos más jóvenes del pueblo ya han comenzado a movilizarse redactando escritos y difundiéndolos. «Entre los jóvenes hay gente de derechas, de izquierdas y gente que se dedica a la construcción y todos están convencidos de que esta no es manera de crecer» relató Ripoll.Por lo que se refiere a las cerca de 600 firmas presentadas los vecinos aseguran que están repartidas por igual entre ciudadanos de Parcent y propietarios que vienen a pasar sus vacaciones a Parcent. Mark Harrison confía en que el equipo de gobierno del PP reaccione como lo han hecho en otros municipios cercanos donde se rechazan proyectos. «Otras ciudades y pueblos han dicho no a los especuladores y a los promotores que solamente se preocupan del dinero» concluyó Harrison.Terres de l´Horta, la promotora que ha presentado el último plan a finales del mes de junio, pretende que Parcent acepte 600.000 m 2 de suelo forestal, y por lo tanto no urbanizable, a cambio de poder construir 2.038 viviendas en una superficie de 400.000 m 2 del Barranquet.En el proyecto presentado los vecinos denuncian que la mayoría de las casas estarán apegadas y crecerán hacinadas sobre la pendiente de la montaña. Respecto a la montaña, aseguraron que muchos ciudadanos de Parcent cuentan con tierras en la montaña que pretende ceder la constructora, con lo que será difícil que se ceda una superficie que no es de su propiedad al completo. Los representantes vecinales se mostraron partidarios de un crecimiento que pueda ser soportado por el pueblo. «No estamos en contra del progreso. Pero lo que se pretende no es admisible».

From Valencia Life 23.7.5
MORE MORE MORE
Despite being in a period of considerable drought, the Conselleria for theTerritory yesterday revealed that a new projected law had been passed by theConsell, and was on its way for parliamentary approval. This new law envisages that over the next ten years, the golf courses in the Valencian Community will increase from the 22 currently in existence to 65, a figure that is below the number of similar installations in Catalunia, where there are already 42 and more are planned and in Andalucia, where 90 golf courses already exist. "In some towns inside Malaga Province, there are more golf courses than there are inside the entire Valencian Community," stated the Conseller for the Territory Rafael Blasco at a press conference following the approval of the projected law by the Consell. The main points of the proposed law envisages that along with any project for any golf course, there is a detailed plan and description of how the proposed course will get its water supply, which may not be taken from that designated for agricultural use, but should either be recycled or desalinated, and theConselleria estimated that when the 65 courses are completed, their combined demands on the water supply would not exceed 23 cubic hectometers, which represents 0.4 or 05% of the total water consumed in the Valencian Community. Another point of the proposed law is that land bordering on the new golf course will not be requalified as buildable. The idea is to create natural parks around these new courses in much the same way as has been carried out in the United States. Equally the new proposed law envisages three types of courses: public, mixed and those of restricted use, with theValencian Government putting the emphasis on public courses in the first instance. Equally, the new proposals envisage only allowing the new golf courses to be set up in areas that are able to support them ' in order that they may contribute and harmonize in their own way to the local environment', and each proposal should have an extensive environmental report presented at the same time as the plans for the course, and that should include proposals that clearly ensure that at least they should be supplied with renewable energy. It was also stated that some 600,000 people come to Alicante Province annually only to play golf, and that with the installation of these newcourses it is estimated that in ten years that figure will rise to over a million and a half.

From Costa Blanca News (22.7.5)
ALBATERA LRAU claims Brits' garden BY DAVE JONES
A British couple caught up in a land-grab scheme in Albatera have spoken of their dismay after finding out that a road has been routed through their garden. Maureen and Michael Marsh had accused the town hall of secrecy over the project at Polígono 5 when they were consistently denied access to the architect's drawings. The scheme to build 700 houses on rural land on the edge of Albatera was first made public on June 15 but the Marshes only managed to see the plans for the first time this week. The couple had to make an appointment to see the drawings even though the law requires the documents to be on public display. Residents have just a few more days to present objections against the Albanatura scheme. Mrs Marsh said: "The situation is worse than we thought. We are absolutely appalled by the barbaric nature of the plan. We knew the road was coming close to our home but we didn't expect it to come so close that we might be able to shake hands with drivers of passing cars. The route the road is taking slices straight through our front gate, down the pathway leading to the house and clips the swimming pool. Just how we are going to put a stop to all this I don't know." She said that the plan showed that 38 of the houses would be built on the land around her home and the neighbours' property. "Our situation will relate to Custer's Last Stand, whereby we will be in the middle surrounded not by Indians but houses," she said. Councillors at Albatera town hall will make a decision in the coming months over whether to approve the Albanatura plan.
davejones@costablanca-news.com
BRITS' CONCERN OVER CATRAL PLAN Mayor hopes to legalise many rural homes
BY DAVE JONES
SCORES OF RESIDENTS IN CATRAL FACE AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE AFTER THE MAYOR UNVEILED A NEW TOWN PLAN (PGOU) WHICH WILL SEE NEARLY A THIRD OF THE MUNICIPALITY CONVERTED INTO BUILDING LAND.
The PGOU - which sets out how Catral will develop over the next decade andmore - envisages that up to 10,248 houses will be built on six million square metres of reclassified land. The population of the municipality is predicted to rise from 6,000 people to more than 30,000. Earlier this year, Catral gained notoriety after Guardia Civil Seprona officers reported that up to 1,000 illegal homes have been built on traditional farmland. The case has now been passed on to the courts. A regional Spanish newspaper reported yesterday (Thursday) that mayor José Manuel Rodríguez Leal believed the regional land and housing department will legalise up to 80 per cent of the illegal homes next year. But those who live in rustic areas which have been earmarked for development under the PGOU fear they will become the victims of land-grab schemes when developers are given the green light. Other residents who have homes in a belt of land near El Hondo natural park, which is to be turned into a green zone, have been told there is a possibility they will only retain their properties during their lifetime. These residents will be offered a parcel of land in an urbanisable area as compensation. Home owners banded together this week to tell the local authority that they do not want excessive development in Catral. But they have been told that all objections against the plan have to be posted by the end of today(Friday). Estate agents Dave and Yvonne Hawley, who run the Torrevieja-based Hispania Group, live in the area which is to be classified as a green zone. "We went to the town hall to get a copy of the plan and to find out what was going on," said Mrs Hawley. "They said that the mayor wanted to offer up 1.685 million square metres of land as a public park as part of the urbanisation plan and that we could only retain our houses until we die. "Everyone agrees that there has to be growth but we want to see controlled growth not massive expansion," said Mr Hawley. "We want the village to be able to keep its identity." A spokesman for the planning department at Catral town hall told CostaBlanca News this week that a draft version of the PGOU had been sent to the regional government office in Alicante and the local authority is waiting to hear comments. He also confirmed that the town hall is in discussion with the regional government over a scheme to legalise houses which have been built on rural land in Catral.
davejones@costablanca-news.com__________

Valencia Life:
ANSWERING BACK
Salvador Vila, the President of the Federation of Building Promoters in theProvince of Valencia, yesterday struck out at the recent visit by several Commissioners of the European Union (actually 3 MEP's and officials) who visited the Valencian Community to see for themselves the effects of theValencian land Laws, better known as LRAU. In his interview with a Valencian media organization, Mr. Vila stated that the delegation 'had been completely misinformed about the situation and that the AUN collective had virtually' brainwashed their thinking'. He added; "At no time were the building promoters asked to participate in an appearance before the visiting Commission, nor given adequate time to explain their point of view over the situation. They arrived here, and were received by Francisco Camps, thePresident of the Valencian Community as well as Rafael Blasco, the Conseller for the Territory in a visit that was totally controlled by AUN." Asked about any possible building moratorium and the many complaints registered under the LRAU, Mr. Vila stated that a moratorium could not be considered, and that the various reclamations against the LRAU and its effects were 'totally unjustified'. When asked about the LUV - the new law proposed by the Valencian Government to replace the LRAU, Mr. Vila stated that it maintained the most positive aspects of the old law, but that it offers better assurances about information, and considerably improves the relationship between local Town Halls and property owners. A brief comment from the AUN Collective stated that Mr. Vila was 'on the attack' on behalf of 'other interested parties', adding that it was a shame that Mr. Vila refused to take into consideration the 15,000 signatures and various demonstrations that had taken place to protest the Valencian Land Laws, and it was only natural that this should draw some attention from Brussels.
-----------------------------
Note:
His comments are reminiscent of those made by the "Autonomous Secretary" of Blasco's ministry (Cristina Serrano) on June 2. By way of a historical note, they are also much along the lines used against the European Parliament's 1988-89 fact finding mission (McMillan-Scott) which also looked into abuses of property owners.
In contrast with what Vila says, representatives of the Alicante promoters' association were some of the first people the recent factfinding mission met with after their arrival in the Valencian Community. Nor did AUN "control" the visit, we merely made suggestions. The fact finding mission was officially responsible for making its arrangements and appointments. Perhaps some correction will be issued from Brussels.
CVS

Sounds promising, but don´t give up the fight yet...........
From Valencia Life.
ON A BUYING SPREE
Environment Minister Cristina Narbona stated yesterday that her Ministry was intent on buying up parts of the Spanish coastal areas' in order to correct the excessive urbanizing in these places'. The Ministry statement also revealed that the proposed measure go 'much further' than buying for the public domain'. Miss Narbona, who was presiding a Conference on the Environment in Madrid, stated that the buying process was in order topreserve part of the coastline of various area of Spain that had become greatly overcome by concrete, and that her ideas were in line of those already undertaken by such countries as France, 'where there is a special organization that buys coastal area in order to protect them'. The firststep has been to enter into an agreement with the autonomous communities in order to secure their cooperation, and Miss Narbona stated that agreements of this nature had already been signed with the Balearic Islands, TheAsturias and the Valencian Community, but that the precise areas involved have yet to be made public. Finally, Miss Narbona stated that the money toacquire these areas was currently under negotiation with the Finance ministry and that this would form part of the budget for 2006. However, Miss Narbona's remarks have been received with a mixture of incredulity and skepticism in the Valencian Community, where Rafael Blasco, the Conseller for the Territory stated that of the 472 kilometers of coastline in the Community, some 25% - 120 Kms - is free from any building,whilst more than 100 Kms have been declared either as a Natural Park or ofbeing in the National Interest.

When reading below, give a thought to the fact that a vast amount of our drinking/useable water is being used from hosepipes to mix the cement, plaster etc on the building sites. Jan.


Spain's worst drought just the start as deserts spread
The Financial Times By Leslie Crawford
Published: June 27 2005 19:41

A severe drought in Spain, the worst since records began in 1947, is playing havoc with livelihoods, sparking forest fires and threatening millions of tourists with water rationing as they head for the beaches this summer.Worse yet, 2005 is unlikely to be a freak year. Spain is getting hotter and drier, with average temperatures rising by 1°C since 1960. The European Environment Agency estimates that average temperatures will rise by a further 4°C over the next century.Winters are now so mild that storks have stopped their annual migration to north Africa. Scientists are witnessing desertification many estimate that up to one third of the country may be a desert within 50 years.

Official figures show that two thirds of the country is now affected by severe drought, with areas around Valencia, Andalusia and Catalonia, where populations more than double during the summer months, among the worst hit. Farmers and town councils in these areas are already fighting over the allocation of scarce water.

Agricultural losses are estimated at €1.6bn ($1.9bn), with much of the olive crop in Jaen, Andalusia, the principal olive-growing area, given up for lost. Catalonia has slapped restrictions on water for irrigation and industrial use in the hope of forestalling broader rationing during the dry summer months.“We desperately need rain before October,” says Jaume Solá, Catalonia's regional environment minister. Season starts in October, roughly.The drought has been exacerbated by Spain's construction boom, which saw a record 700,000 new homes built last year about half of them on the coast.But the frenzy of building in one of the driest regions of Europe has severely challenged the ability of town planners to provide basic services such as running water.In the provinces of Alicante and Murcia, on the Mediterranean coast, the regional water authority has asked councils to delay water connections to new tourist developments until after the summer.The World Wildlife Fund estimates there are 10,000 illegal wells in the Costa del Sol, many of which supply tourist developments and are accelerating the depletion of water resources.“Spain is abusing the sustainable limits of tourism development,” says Chuck Svoboda, a former Canadian diplomat who leads Abusos Urban´sticos No, a campaign group that is fighting corruption in real estate development on the coast. But the building boom shows no sign of slowing despite the lack of water. The Júcar water authority, which supplies Valencia's 4.5m residents, estimates 1m new homes will be built in Valencia over the next decade. In addition, it says town councils have approved the construction of 67 new, water-needy golf courses in the region, bringing the total to 69.Rafael Blasco, Valencia's regional housing minister, describes golf resorts as a “new kind of agriculture”. He wants the European Union to allocate farming aid to them and dismisses talk about development being overdone.

Cristina Narbona, Spain's environment minister, says the drought has put the spotlight on the country's farmers, who account for four-fifths of water consumption in Spain. Ms Narbona says fewer than 10 per cent of farmers use efficient irrigation methods. “The remaining 90 per cent still resort to flooding their fields, an incredibly wasteful practice that needs to be eradicated,” Ms Narbona says.Ms Narbona has secured a €370m budget to fight the drought with desalination plants, more water recycling and the drilling of new wells in the worst hit regions. The risible price Spaniards pay for their water 30 times lower than the European average remains a taboo subject. Earlier this year, Spain's agriculture ministry shot down a plan drafted by Ms Narbona's department that would have imposed punitive water rates on farmers who waste water.Tourist resorts and golf courses, with their heavy water consumption, would also have had to pay 15 times more for their water than the average Spanish household.Without cost incentives to reduce consumption, Ms Narbona can do little more than issue new appeals to save water..com

Valencia Life.
NOT COLLABORATING
Bernardo del Rosal, the Ombudsman for the Valencian Community, yesterday presented his department's report to the Valencian Parliament. In it, Mr.Del Rosal stated that 14 town halls in Alicante Province together form a 'black list' after the refused to cooperate with the Ombudsman. All these town halls are ruled by Mayors from the Partido Popular and they are: Alicante, Alcoy, Altea, Benidorm, Callosa de Segura, Novelda, San Miguel de Salinas, San Vicente del Raspeig, Torrevieja, Villajoyosa and Orihuela, whilst three town halls ruled by the Socialists were also noted for their lack of collaboration with the Ombudsman - Denia, Guardamar del Segura andVillena. Another interesting point of the report is that Alicante Town Hall received the most number of complaints last year - 131 - over 30 more than Valencia Town Hall.

Valencia Life: DEBT AND THE COMMUNITY
According to figures released yesterday by the Bank of Spain, the debts of the Valencian Community up to the end of March this year stood at 9,538 million Euros – the third largest in Spain. Ahead of the Community in indebtedness were Catalunia with a debt of 13,184 million Euros and Madrid with 10,014 million Euros. These figures represent a 10.9% increase over the same period last year, with the Valencian Community situated at the head of the ratio debt/gross Domestic Product with a figure of 11.5%, followed by Catalunia with 8.4%, Galicia with 7.1%, Madrid with 6.8% and Andalucia with 6.4% all of whom were above the national average of 6.3%. The debts of the Town Halls of the Cities whose population was more than half a million people, such as Madrid, Malaga, Seville, Valencia and Zaragoza increased by 19.3% to 5,544 million Euros. The largest increase in Town Hall debts was registered by Madrid, which increased by 75%, whilst in contrast Barcelona Town Hall managed to reduce its debts by 15%. Comment: The debt of the Valencian Community (pop about 4.7 million) is increasing by several hundred million Euros per year according to other reports ( About €200 million in the first quarter of 2005). This while the Community receives the highest subsidies, per capita, in Spain. Meanwhile how much money flows out to "fiscal paradises"? It is difficult to obtain current figures, but El Caixa bank reported that from August 2002 to August 2003, just under €400 million was sent from the VC to such overseas locations. The VC'c debt is about the same as the national debt of Kenya! (For those here in Benissa, it's interesting that with about 12,000 taxpayers, the debt is over €25 million with an annual deficit of some €3 million.)Spain's incoming foreign direct investment in 2004, according to figures released last week, was down over 60% from 2003, to a paltry €1 Billion. Who pays the bills?

THE BATTLE IS FAR FROM WON
Published on 01/07/2005 (Round Town News)
A recent meeting called by the organization, 'Abusos Urbanisticos No', the pressure group that is calling on the Valencian Government to bring to an end the expropriation of land under the LRAU, was very well supported. President of the group, Charles Svoboda, told the audience of a recent demonstration in Benissa by a local ecological organization against the proposed development of the area, which would include 4,700 houses, two golf courses and various hotel complexes, in the Lleus area, so doubling the size of the town. With regard to the recent fact-finding visit by MEPs to the Valencian region, it was hoped that a full and detailed report regarding LRAU, would be put before the European Parliament in the Autumn, although a draft report should be available within the next few weeks. Members of the audience were concerned that recent misleading press coverage in the UK, gave the impression that compensation was now available for victims of the LRAU. Charles Svoboda told the audience, that this was indeed, 'wishful thinking'. David Lowe of the Petitions Committee of the European Parliament, stated that, 'The members of the Petitions Committee delegation which visited Madrid and Valencia sincerely regret the very misleading information, recently published in the British media, which has caused hopes to be unfairly raised among the thousands of victims of the application of the LRAU."He reiterated their determination to find a solution to the problems faced by those who have been unjustly treated and that they would be making suggestions to the Valencian authorities concerning the new draft law. He stressed, "Both issues will be the subject of ongoing discussions, neither are yet resolved. The battle is far from won, so please keep on fighting for a change to the Valencian land laws."
By Chris Sinclair