The Provincial Council of Bizkaia has launched the procedure to review the partial territorial plan of the Enkartazioa region

The Provincial Council of Bizkaia has initiated the review procedure for the Partial Territorial Plan of the Functional Area of Enkartazioa, and along with it, has approved the citizen participation program. The agreement was reached during the government meeting held on October 8, as item 26 on the agenda, and was published in issue number 208 of the Boletín Oficial del País Vasco on October 30, 2026, with reference 2026/4596. The publication consists of five pages and includes a summary of the participation program as an annex.

The agreement arose from a proposal by Carlos Alzaga Sagastasoloa, the Provincial Deputy for Infrastructure and Territorial Development, and is based on articles 84 and 94 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations. The Council has decided that the legal conditions to formally begin the review of the plan have been met, understanding that the current planning has become outdated.

Current plan and legal basis

The plan being reviewed was approved by the Basque Government through Decree 226/2011 on October 26, 2011, and has been in effect for fifteen years. The legal framework for the change is established by article 13 of Law 4/1990, of May 31, on the Territorial Planning of the Basque Country, and Decree 46/2020, of March 24, which regulates the procedure for approving territorial planning plans and urban planning instruments.

The functional area consists of ten municipalities: Balmaseda, Zalla, Güeñes, Gordexola, Sopuerta, Artzentales, Galdames, Lanestosa, Turtzioz, and Karrantza Harana/Valle de Carranza. All of them have representation in the participation process, as do the municipal councils and associations (mankomunitateak) of the municipalities.

Four phases in twelve months

The participation program is a summary of the document required by article 3 of Decree 46/2020, and has the Plan Foral de Participación Ciudadana y Social 2024-2027 of the Council of Bizkaia as its main reference. The Council has planned four phases within a twelve-month period from the initial agreement:

• Phase 1 (1st month): the participation program itself and the initial presentation to the municipalities and the association.
• Phase 2 (2nd and 3rd month): information and diagnosis, with in-depth dialogues, working meetings with public and private organizations, focus groups, and the first workshop-forum open to citizens.
• Phase 3 (4th to 8th month): drafting of the progress report and the Initial Strategic Document, along with a second focus group session.
• Phase 4 (9th to 12th month): processing of the progress and participation, including the final workshop-forum, the results report, and the gender impact memory.

Participation channels and language specifications

The program envisions three types of activities: communication, pedagogical, and consensus-building.

• Communication: initial material, participation guide, specific website, press releases, and social networks.
• Pedagogical: dissemination materials and informative talks.
• Consensus-oriented: consultations, meetings with city councils, sector working groups, citizens’ digital mailbox, sessions held with associations and citizens, and an online questionnaire.

The condition for carrying this out in Basque only or bilingually has also been specified: all material will be bilingual, giving priority to Basque in size, boldness, or location, and participation in public sessions will be possible in both official languages. Regarding the gender perspective, Legislative Decree 1/2023, of March 16, is taken as the basis; all statistics must be provided disaggregated by sex, and reconciliation measures are foreseen to facilitate participation.

Information request and publication

The Provincial Council has requested general information and specific information regarding forecasts and programs affecting the area from the departments of the Basque Government, the State Administration, and the city councils of the functional area, which is necessary for the drafting of the plan. The information must be provided within a period of two months.

The agreement mandates publication in the Boletín Oficial de Bizkaia journal, the Boletín Oficial del País Vasco journal, the two newspapers with the widest circulation in the historical territory of Bizkaia, and on the Provincial Council’s website.

This review will condition the organization of the Enkarterri territory in the coming years, and the Provincial Council has announced that the process will have a twelve-month duration. Consequently, municipalities, associations, and economic agents will have the opportunity to make observations regarding the content of the plan through the channels opened in each phase.

Fuente: Boletín Oficial del País Vasco, n.º 208, 30 de octubre de 2026, I. atala (Anuncios — Otros anuncios oficiales), orr. 1-5 (official reference: 2026/4596).