El Pa?s newspaper today has a long report on Government plans to free 776 kilometres of the Mediterranean coastline from buildings.

Such a plan, to reinforce the coastal law introduced in 1988 is estimated to have a cost of 5 billion ?.

The paper mentions some of the current irregularities ? a 24 story hotel still under construction in Calpe despite being partially built on land protected under the 1988 law.
500 families see their illegal humble homes on the beach in Adra, Almer?a, under threat also from an advancing sea.
Two towers planned on public land in Benidorm, and a development on reclaimed land in La Manga del Mar Menor.

Under the 1988 Ley de Costas, the beach is considered to be public land. Behind the top of the waterline there should be 106 metres more of protected land where sports and agricultural facilities can be placed, but not homes.

But now, nearly 20 years after the law was introduced, the Ministry for the Environment says it is taking action to correct the previous irregularities.

The Ministry is meeting with the regional governments across the country on Wednesday this week when they will offer them a new plan to not only stop fresh developments but also agree on the demolition of current houses, and hotels built in the public area of the beach.

The Ministry understands that such a plan can only proceed with the agreement of both the regional governments and local town halls.

Secretary General for Biodiversity and Territory from the Environment Ministry, Antonio Serrano, has described it as ?a radical change in the coastal policy?. The Baleares and Canaries are also included in the plans.

I would be really surprised if this went ahead, as the report has said the Ley de Costas was introduced in 1988, can you imagine the number of properties that have infrindged this law in 19 years? just in Marbella alone, even. After all the problems Marbella has had with illigal properties they have just opened the luxurious Laguna Village… where, well built on the beach! Look at how long the Malaya case has been going on and yet seems to be going nowhere while those that where in jail are mostly all out.

I beleive Banderas house in Marbella has infringed this law, not by him but by those that originally built it, what are they going to do, pull Banderas house down?... some chance.

The El Algarrobico complex in Almeria ‘On the beach’, look how long Greenpeace has been on this, it has supposed to have been stopped but building has continued and the locals are outraged as they do not want to loose the work this complex will create.
http://www.theolivepress.es/2007/07/20/?illegal-hotel?-daubed-on-illegal-hotel/

There will be civil war in this country if they try to pull down all the illegal properties, the coasts are totally littered with them! they might get away with isolated properties but I can’t see how they will get away with more than that.

How do you compensate people who have bought property that in many cases they bought legitimately, the authorities are the ones at fault here not the people who bought the property.

A government who did this would suffer big time if not destroy them, I don’t think Zapatero has the cojones, OK I guess he is mad enough but I think there has to be some of his government that have enough screws to get it together to make him understand the consequences for them in doing this.

There is also the aspect of the future, many people have very little if no trust left in investing here, certainly in the south of Spain, if they start to pull down properties then they will destroy what will be left of a receeding economy, I just really can’t see it’s going to happen. 😊

Possibly a case of “Better late than never” eh 😉

econ - 06 December 2007 04:56 AM

I would be really surprised if this went ahead, as the report has said the Ley de Costas was introduced in 1988, can you imagine the number of properties that have infrindged this law in 19 years? just in Marbella alone, even. After all the problems Marbella has had with illigal properties they have just opened the luxurious Laguna Village… where, well built on the beach! Look at how long the Malaya case has been going on and yet seems to be going nowhere while those that where in jail are mostly all out.

I beleive Banderas house in Marbella has infringed this law, not by him but by those that originally built it, what are they going to do, pull Banderas house down?... some chance.

The El Algarrobico complex in Almeria ‘On the beach’, look how long Greenpeace has been on this, it has supposed to have been stopped but building has continued and the locals are outraged as they do not want to loose the work this complex will create.
http://www.theolivepress.es/2007/07/20/?illegal-hotel?-daubed-on-illegal-hotel/

There will be civil war in this country if they try to pull down all the illegal properties, the coasts are totally littered with them! they might get away with isolated properties but I can’t see how they will get away with more than that.

How do you compensate people who have bought property that in many cases they bought legitimately, the authorities are the ones at fault here not the people who bought the property.

A government who did this would suffer big time if not destroy them, I don’t think Zapatero has the cojones, OK I guess he is mad enough but I think there has to be some of his government that have enough screws to get it together to make him understand the consequences for them in doing this.

There is also the aspect of the future, many people have very little if no trust left in investing here, certainly in the south of Spain, if they start to pull down properties then they will destroy what will be left of a receeding economy, I just really can’t see it’s going to happen. 😊

Since your reply there has been a spate of demarcation lines (deslindes)  published by the minister of the environment (Medio Ambiente) Cristina Narbonna,  applying the Spanish Coastal Law (ley de costas) in a very abusive way.
The director and sub director of the coastal department, Jos? Fernandez y Angel Mu?oz have applied the law to the letter in some areas and in other areas they have been lenient. 
The definition of what is public domain (dominio publico) is so draconian that it makes it impossible politically to apply everywhere, as you said, and so they pick and choose where it suits there aims and where there will be least resistance.

They didn?t stop the large constructors building the properties but they are now going for the people who bought them and those families who have had properties near the beach for generations.

There is now an association of people affected 20.000 or so, whose aim is to publicise the issue nationally and globally, start a debate on how to stop this abusive application of the law, and when necessary suggest changes to the law to allow it to be applied without castigating people who have done nothing illegal.

The group is called Plataforma National de Afectados por la Ley de Costas   PNALC

If you are affected contact   .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)  English Speaking Group.