The Board reviews the environmental authorization of the Consuegra poultry mega-farm

The General Directorate of Environmental Quality of the Department of Sustainable Development of Castilla-La Mancha has approved the ex officio review of the integrated environmental authorization for the poultry farm owned by the company Avícola Naver, S.L. in the municipality of Consuegra (Toledo). The resolution, signed on October 14, 2026, by the general director Tomás Villarrubia Lázaro, is published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha number 211, dated November 4, 2026 (reference 2026/7844).

The procedure responds to the obligation under Article 26 of the consolidated text of the Law on integrated pollution prevention and control, approved by Royal Legislative Decree 1/2016, to review authorization conditions within four years of the publication of the conclusions on best available techniques (BAT). For the intensive rearing of poultry, these conclusions were established by the Commission’s Implementing Decision (EU) 2017/302 of February 15, 2017. The affected file is AAI-TO-318, with NIMA 4520634909.

A four-year process without objections

The original authorization was granted by a resolution dated March 18, 2011, from the General Directorate of Environmental Assessment and subsequently modified by resolutions dated December 5, 2013, January 26, 2023, and July 17, 2023. On August 11, 2022, a report was requested from the Consuegra City Council, though there is no record of its submission; there was also no municipal communication following the subsequent procedure.

Following the agreement of October 25, 2022, from the General Directorate of Circular Economy, the holder submitted the technical documentation on December 15, 2022, and complementary information on February 27, 2023. The file was subjected to public consultation via an announcement on April 25, 2023, published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha number 91, dated May 12, 2023, with no objections registered.

From 88,000 to 118,000 laying hens

The farm occupies plots 35 and 82 of polygon 78, with access from the regional road CM-4025 connecting Consuegra and Turleque, more than 1.5 kilometers from the urban center and with no other poultry farms within a 500-meter radius. In 2025, the holder reported two non-substantial modifications (entry records 3048740 and 3706346) that reorganize the production capacity:

• 118,000 laying hens, compared to the previous 88,000 spaces: 85,000 in floor rearing and 33,000 in cages.
• 60,000 rearing pullets, a figure that remains unchanged.
• Laying shed A of 90 x 12 meters (33,000 hens in cages), shed B of 110 x 22 meters (55,000 on floor), rearing shed C of 114 x 14 meters, and the new shed D of 100 x 12 meters (30,000 hens on floor).
• Egg grading and packaging center of 30 x 22 meters, with a storage and dispatch area.

The Department concludes that the modification does not generate significant increases in emissions, discharges, waste, or resource consumption, does not affect protected areas, and does not reach the thresholds of Law 2/2020 on environmental assessment of Castilla-La Mancha; therefore, it does not require an environmental impact assessment.

Water, energy, and emission limits

The annex of the resolution details the operating conditions. The water supply comes from three wells (two authorized and one pending) for 12,535 m³, with tanks of 1,135 m³ and saving and leak detection devices with a potential reduction of 2%. Regarding energy, the farm has an overhead transformer of 160 kVA connected to a 20 kV line, photovoltaic panels of 63,630 kWp on the roof of the breeding house, 60 kW batteries, and a 110 kVA generator set.

The only channeled sources are the 423 kW propane boilers in the rearing house and the 110 kW diesel emergency generator, both below 500 kWt. Ammonia emission limits are set at 0.08 kg per place per year in cages and 0.13 kg in cage-free systems, in addition to maximums of 0.8 kg of nitrogen and 0.45 kg of P2O5 excreted per place per year.

The resolution does not require noise or odor management plans, although the environmental body may request them if nuisances are confirmed; it establishes immission limits of 150 µg/m³ for suspended particles and 70 dB by day and 60 dB by night at the perimeter. Poultry litter will be removed every 24 or 26 hours by an authorized manager, with no slurry or manure pits, and the establishment of the financial guarantee for environmental liability provided for in Law 26/2007 is mandatory.

Administrative appeal and implementation period

The resolution does not end the administrative process: an administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) may be filed against it before the head of the Department of Sustainable Development within one month from the day following its notification. The owner has five years to start the activity from the publication of the resolution, and failure to comply with the conditions may lead to fines, closure, disqualification, or revocation of the authorization.

The decision consolidates in the agro-industrial map of the region an operation that grows by 34% in laying hens and remains linked to European standards for emissions, water, energy, and manure management. For the residents of Consuegra and nearby municipalities, the document notes that there were no citizen objections or municipal reports throughout the procedure, and that additional requirements for noise, odors, or dust would only be activated if proven nuisances appeared.

Source: Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, no. 211, November 4, 2026, III.- Other provisions and acts, page 39055 (official reference: 2026/7844).