Aguilafuente approves the ordinance regulating the discharge of slurry

The Aguilafuente City Council has definitively approved the Municipal Ordinance regulating the disposal of slurry, manure, and other waste from agricultural and livestock sources, by agreement of the Plenary on June 29, 2026. The full text is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Segovia, number 103, dated August 28, 2026, page 17, and enters into force upon its full publication.

The regulation replaces the ordinance in effect since 2001 and responds to the classification of the municipal district as a zone vulnerable to water pollution by nitrates of agricultural origin, in accordance with Decree 5/2020, of June 25, which designates these zones and approves the Code of Good Agricultural Practices of Castilla y León. The objective is to prevent and correct environmental pollution and the nuisances that the disposal of these wastes generates regarding public health, neighborhood coexistence, and the rural environment.

Safety strips and exclusion zones

The ordinance establishes a system of safety strips in which disposal is restricted or prohibited, depending on the proximity to urban centers, infrastructure, and water resources:

• 1,000 meters from the outer limit of the urban center or developable land.
• 10 meters from the outer limit of the communication routes of the provincial or municipal road network.
• 30 meters from the outer limit of forests classified as of public utility.
• 500 meters from springs, drinking water intakes, supply reservoirs, boreholes and wells, as well as from drinking water pipelines and tanks.
• 150 meters from watercourses classified by the Duero Hydrographic Confederation.

Natura 2000 Network spaces, public hydraulic domain lands, and flood-prone areas of the municipal district are excluded from disposal.

Disposal conditions and seasonal prohibitions

Disposal may only be carried out on rural farmland for the purpose of agronomic fertilization, following the preparation of a fertilization plan. The maximum nitrogen input may not exceed 170 kg per hectare of agricultural land, and waste must be buried within 24 hours following disposal. Application via plate, fan, and cannon systems is prohibited, except for the exceptions outlined in Royal Decree 1051/2022, of December 27.

The regulation prohibits discharging during Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays and their eves, on the days of patron saint festivals and, in any case, during the period between June 21 and September 21. Discharging into the municipal sewage network and watercourses, ponding and runoff outside the property, discharging into unauthorized ponds, and stirring the slurry pond are also prohibited. Transport must guarantee the watertightness of the vehicles, and their circulation through the urban center is prohibited.

Sanctioning Regime

Infractions are classified as minor, serious, and very serious and are sanctioned in accordance with Legislative Decree 1/2015, of November 12, the consolidated text of the Environmental Prevention Law of Castilla y León. The sanctioning authority lies with the Mayor’s Office, and those who operate the lands where the discharges occur and the vehicle drivers will be directly responsible, with subsidiary liability for the owners of the vehicles and the producing farms.

Surveillance and control are the responsibility of the Aguilafuente City Council, with the collaboration of the Environmental Agents of the Junta de Castilla y León and the State, as well as the Security Forces and Corps. Any citizen may report non-compliance, while preserving the confidentiality of the whistleblower. The agreement, signed on August 21, 2026, by the mayor-president, Luis Mariano García Martín, may be appealed through contentious-administrative proceedings before the High Court of Justice of Castilla y León based in Burgos.

The new ordinance provides Aguilafuente with an updated and demanding framework to reconcile agro-livestock activity, which carries great economic weight in the municipality, with the protection of an ecosystem declared vulnerable to nitrates. For the residents, it represents a reinforcement of health and quality of life, while livestock farms must adapt their waste management and application practices to the new requirements.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Segovia, no. 103, of August 28, 2026, Municipal Administration, page 17 (official reference: RE-13875).