New environmental and territorial planning legislation in the Community of Madrid

In the BOE On March 20, 2025, the LAW 7/2024, of December 26, on measures for balanced development in the field of environment and land use planning.

As indicated in the preamble to the law itself, this was created with the objective of being able to update some regional regulations that were approved some time ago, which invites them to be updated.

The law consists of 6 chapters, with different themes, some related to the environment and land use planning, which are what will be developed below:

Chapter I. Environment and Spatial Planning

Called Measures in the Area of Spatial Planning and Urbanism, it revolves around these 2 themes.

With regard to the Spatial Planning, the following hierarchy is established:

1. Regional Territorial Strategy Plan
2. Territorial Plans
3. Coordinated Territorial Action Programs
4. Natural and Rural Environment Management Plans
5. Municipal Strategic Plans

The Regional Plan must establish the basic elements for the organization throughout the Community of Madrid and define the frame of reference for all other management instruments.

However, given the current difficulty in approving this Regional Plan, the law promotes the approval of Territorial Plans, who can develop the Regional Plan, or in their absence be able to order at the regional level.

On the other hand, a new figure is created that would be the Municipal Strategic Plans, as management tools at the municipal level

The law establishes these two tools as the basic instruments to gradually advance the territorial planning of the community.

With regard to the urban planning regime, in the second article, the Land Law 9/2001 of the Community of Madrid, within a context of a global review of urban regulations with the purpose of making urban development in municipalities more flexible.

The relevant changes in Law 7/2024 relate to the regulation of urban development qualification and Special Action Projects.

First, it clarifies and delimits the regime applicable to constructions, buildings and installations in undeveloped land And in unsectorized buildable land, through a reform of article 29 of the Land Act. With this modification, those uses that can be implemented are more precisely listed without the need to obtain urban planning qualification, provided that they are not expressly prohibited by planning or by applicable sectoral regulations. This measure seeks to provide greater legal security to traditional rural activities and facilitate their viability without imposing unnecessary administrative burdens. In the same way, the actions that Do they require urban planning qualification, introducing greater transparency in decision-making and ensuring the compatibility of land use with the intended territorial model.

On the other hand, a significant reform is being addressed in the regime of Special Action Projects, regulated in article 30 of the Land Act. Law 7/2024 simplifies its processing, especially with regard to those infrastructures necessary for the general interest and linked to key sectors such as energy transport, telecommunications or water resources management. This simplification aims to eliminate administrative bottlenecks, reduce the time needed to implement strategic infrastructures and promote more agile territorial development, without renouncing essential guarantees in terms of environmental protection and land use planning.

Chapter II. Environmental changes

For its part, composed of articles 3 to 8, it is in which the modifications relating to the environment are mainly included.

Article 3 establishes the amendments for the protection and regulation of wild flora and fauna in the Community of Madrid, establishing the regime of actions for protected species and regulating the elimination of exotic species.

Article 4 amends Law 8/2005 on the protection and promotion of urban trees of the community of Madrid, mainly regulating their felling, establishing limits on the felling of protected feet, exceptions, compensations and protection tasks in trees in actions.

Article 5 establishes measures regarding the need for the Environmental Impact Assessment process, establishing for projects not included in Annexes I and II of the reference legislation, the need for environmental assessment procedure if it significantly affects protected natural areas, mountains under a special regime, wetlands and protected reservoirs

Along the same lines, it amends Article 7, stating that it may be agreed on simultaneous processing of the strategic environmental assessment procedure of a plan or program and the environmental impact assessment procedure of the projects that develop it, provided that the promoter is unique for both procedures and they are processed by the same substantive body.

For their part, articles 6 and 8 establish measures in respect of the electricity supply And the waterworks.

The rest of the chapters establish measures that are not so related to the environment and territorial planning, dealing with the following topics:

Chapter III

On the protection of animal rights and welfare.

Chapter IV

Organizational management of the Madrid Institute for Agricultural and Food Research (IMIA).

Chapter V

Legal regime of regulatory councils and other public law entities for the management of food quality figures.

Chapter VI

Housing Tax Regime.

From Environmental Ideas we follow the evolution of sectoral legislation in the Community of Madrid, with extensive experience in providing assistance on various topics in this geographical area.

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