Environmental green light for the Zona Maruca urbanization project in Avilés

The Regional Ministry of Mobility, Environment and Emergency Management of the Principality of Asturias has issued a favorable environmental impact report for the urbanization project of the APE N-1/N-4 area, Ciudad Jardín Cristalería (Zona Maruca)-Jardín de Cantos, in Avilés. The resolution, signed on October 6, 2026, and published in the Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias (BOPA) no. 203 of October 20, 2026, concludes that the project should not be subject to an ordinary environmental assessment. The file is listed under reference IA-IA-0094/2026//AUTO/2026/64274 and publication code 2026-08277.

The process and decision-maker

The procedure was processed via a simplified environmental impact assessment, under Law 21/2013, of December 9, on environmental assessment. The environmental body is the aforementioned Regional Ministry, by virtue of Decree 22/2023, of July 31, on the restructuring of the Regional Ministries, and Decree 51/2025, of February 21, which establishes the basic organic structure of the department. The resolution is signed by the Director General of the Environment, by delegation of the Resolution of May 8, 2025 (BOPA no. 88, of May 9, 2025).

The chronology of the file is as follows:

• May 15, 2026: the Environmental Assessment Service receives the request for initiation and the project’s environmental document from the Avilés City Council, the substantive body.
• August 6, 2026: an announcement is published in BOPA no. 151 for a consultation period of 20 business days for unknown interested parties.
• October 6, 2026: the environmental impact report is formulated.
• October 20, 2026: the resolution is published in the BOPA, within the ten-business-day period required by the regulation.

The project falls under Annex II of Law 21/2013, group 7 (infrastructure projects), letter b), relating to urbanization projects, including the construction of shopping centers and parking lots.

Chosen alternative and required conditions

The report considers Alternative 1 of the proposals in the environmental document, collected in Annex I, to be environmentally viable, provided that the planned determinations and measures are met. The promoter is the Compensation Board of APE N-1/N-4. The imposed conditions are:

• Manage waste from the construction phase in accordance with Law 7/2022, of April 8, on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy.
• Manage construction and demolition waste according to Royal Decree 105/2008, of February 1.
• If surplus excavation soil is generated and reused in another project, apply Order APM/1007/2017, of October 10, on the recovery of excavated natural materials.
• Do not use species included in Royal Decree 630/2013, of August 2, which regulates the Spanish Catalog of Invasive Alien Species, in landscaping.

The monitoring of environmental effects will be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the environmental document to ensure compliance with protective and corrective measures. Annexes I, II, and III of the report—project description and alternatives, results of public participation, and technical analysis of the file—are available on the Principality’s website, in the section for consultations and public information on environmental procedures.

Validity and effects on residential development

The report will lose its validity and cease to produce its effects if, once published in the BOPA, the project is not authorized within a maximum period of four years. The resolution is not independently appealable, without prejudice to any administrative or judicial appeals that may be filed against the project authorization act. The substantive body must incorporate the evaluation carried out, including the results of the consultations, into the authorization procedure.

The area also has another open procedure: on June 30, 2026, the Compensation Board approved the expropriation project by joint valuation of the assets and rights of owners who are not part of the entity, subject to one month of public information via an announcement in BOPA no. 178, of September 15, 2026 (2026-07443).

The environmental approval unlocks the urban planning processing of a pending residential area in the city and directly affects the residents of Jardín de Cantos and the owners integrated into the Compensation Board, who see the path cleared to execute the urbanization without the ordinary procedure, which is longer and more demanding, although subject to the environmental conditions set by the Department.

Source: Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias, no. 203 of October 20, 2026, section I (Other Provisions), page 1 (official reference: 2026-08277).