The Xunta declares the Antela da Limia Foundation to be of Galician interest

The Department of Environment and Climate Change has declared the Antela Foundation to be of Galician interest and ordered its registration in the Registry of Foundations of Galician Interest. The decision incorporates the Resolution of September 22, 2026, from the department’s Technical General Secretariat, published in the Official Gazette of Galicia (DOG) no. 186, of September 30, 2026, in section III, Other provisions, p. 50694 (official reference CVE-DOG: brfl2nu9-wk27-st61-m696-iil2pxymxgq5). The entity is headquartered in San Cibrao das Viñas (Ourense) and focuses its activity on the restoration of the Antela Lagoon and the floodplains of the Limia.

The resolution comes after the Department of Presidency, Justice and Sports classified the foundation as being of interest for the defense of Galicia’s natural environment through the Order of August 21, 2026, published in the DOG no. 163, of August 28, 2026 (reference CVE-DOG: eeu6jlk4-2ll4-kqx0-6hw2-iaqn6mvquv19). At that time, it was agreed to assign the entity to the protectorate of the Department of Environment and Climate Change, which now formally assumes that function.

The file was processed under Law 12/2006, of December 1, on foundations of Galician interest, and the regulations approved by Decree 14/2009, of January 21, and by Decree 15/2009, of January 21. The department’s competence to issue the declaration derives from Decree 137/2024, of May 20, on the organic structure of the department.

A foundation established in December 2025

The Antela Foundation was established by public deed granted on December 12, 2025, under protocol number 4199, before the Ourense notary María Isabel Louro García. The request for classification, declaration of Galician interest, and registration was submitted on January 15, 2026, by Carlos Díaz Pérez, authorized by the foundation.

The initial board of trustees consists of three people:

• Isabel Álvarez Balvís, as president.
• Marcos Manuel Freán Hernández, as vice president.
• Serafín Jesús González Prieto, as secretary.

The deed of constitution includes the identity of the founders, the endowment, the statutes, and the composition of the board, while the statutes establish the name, address, object and purpose, the rules for the application of income, the functioning of the board, and the causes for dissolution.

Recovering the Limia wetland complex

According to article 6 of its statutes, the foundation’s object is to carry out activities for the conservation of nature, the landscape, and natural ecosystems, along with their associated fauna, flora, and geology, as well as the study and dissemination of natural values and the restoration of degraded spaces. The resolution details that special attention is given to:

• Promote the restoration and recovery of rivers, wetlands, and marginal areas of the once great wetland complex formed by the Lagoa de Antela and the floodplains of Limia.
• Contribute to the conservation or recovery of habitats and priority conservation species of flora and fauna.
• Learn about, disseminate, and protect the natural and traditional values of the Lagoa de Antela and A Limia.

The Galician Government frames this objective within the competencies of environment, conservation of natural heritage, promotion of the landscape, and protection of waters.

Protectorate, obligations, and appeal process

With the registration, the foundation is subject to the regulations for foundations of Galician interest and, in particular, to the obligations of providing sufficient publicity of its objectives and activities, of being non-profit in the provision of its services, and of annually presenting the accounting documentation and the action plan to the protectorate, exercised by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.

The resolution, signed by the technical general secretary Mª Carmen Bouso Montero, does not end the administrative route: an appeal for reversal (recurso de alzada) may be filed against it before the Minister of Environment and Climate Change within one month from the day following its publication, in accordance with articles 121 and 122 of Law 39/2015, of October 1.

The declaration provides the legal and fiscal coverage typical of foundations of Galician interest to a project that aspires to recover one of the great disappeared wetland complexes of Galicia. For the rural areas of Ourense and the environmental sector, the registration opens the door for the entity to participate in public restoration programs and for its action plan to be under the supervision of the Xunta.

Source: Official Gazette of Galicia (DOG), no. 186, of September 30, 2026, section III, p. 50694 (official reference: CVE-DOG: brfl2nu9-wk27-st61-m696-iil2pxymxgq5).