Environmental green light for vineyard irrigation in Corral de Almaguer

The Provincial Delegation for Sustainable Development of Toledo has formulated the environmental impact report for the project to implement irrigation on more than 10 hectares in the municipality of Corral de Almaguer (Toledo), concluding that it does not need to undergo an Ordinary Environmental Impact Assessment. The resolution, signed on August 25, 2026, by the provincial delegate José Rubén Torres Moratalla, is published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha (DOCM) number 170, dated September 4, 2026, with reference 2026/6383.

The project, processed under file S478-2025-TO-00063, is promoted by Lucio Vicente Martínez-Villanueva Fernández-Tostado and consists of the implementation of irrigation for two already established woody crop plots (trellised vines), with a total area of 12.837 hectares.

Regulatory Framework and Processing

The decision is adopted under Law 2/2020, of February 7, on Environmental Assessment of Castilla-La Mancha, which subjects irrigation transformation projects affecting more than 10 hectares to a simplified assessment. Competence lies with the Provincial Delegation by delegation from the General Directorate of Environmental Quality of the Ministry of Sustainable Development, in accordance with Decree 112/2023 and the Resolution of 05/24/2024.

The procedure began on May 9, 2025, and was registered on July 17, 2025. During processing, it was detected that the project had already been executed; therefore, the promoter reverted the plots to their initial state by removing the irrigation pipes, as evidenced by georeferenced photographs. The prior consultation process opened on March 5, 2026.

The Project and its Alternatives

The action involves two groundwater abstractions and buried PVC piping leading to drip lines, with an estimated consumption of 17,160 m³/year. Three alternatives were analyzed:

• Alternative 1 (non-execution): the plots remain rain-fed, with a maximum allocation of 48,821.819 m³/year.
• Alternative 2 (selected): partial transfer of irrigation rights to the vine plots, with an allocation of 1,500 m³/ha and a saving of 10,674.959 m³/year.
• Alternative 3: transfer of rights from the vineyard to the current plot, which is economically unfeasible.

Alternative 2 was chosen as it combined economic viability and water savings. The plots are located in polygon 10, plot 26, and in polygon 12, plot 21, near the SPA ES0000170 “La Mancha Norte steppe area”, which is inhabited by species such as the great bustard, the Eurasian corncrake, and the lesser kestrel.

Environmental Conditions

The report imposes extensive conditions for the environmental integration of the project, including among other measures:

• Protection strip of at least 5 meters relative to nearby watercourses.
• Eco-regimes favoring biodiversity across the entire surface.
• Compliance with Decree 80/2025 on nitrate-vulnerable zones and Royal Decree 1051/2022 on sustainable soil nutrition.
• Installation of flow measurement devices and extraction controls in accordance with the Guadiana Hydrographic Confederation.
• Environmental monitoring during the first five years of useful life, with annual reports in the first quarter.

The Guadiana Hydrographic Confederation reported that the plots are located within the “Lillo-Quintanar” groundwater body, declared at risk of not achieving good quantitative status, although it noted that there will be sufficient resources for the requested concession (file 3462/2019).

Relevance of the decision

The resolution allows progress in the regularization of an already implemented irrigation system in a region with a strong viticultural vocation, but conditions its operation on strict water and biodiversity protection measures. The report will expire if execution does not begin within a maximum period of four years from its publication, and any modification to the project must be submitted to a new environmental consultation.

Source: Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, No. 170, September 4, 2026, section III, page 31413 (official reference: 2026/6383).