Mérida approves its municipal plan regarding flood risk

The Local Governing Board of the Mérida City Council approved the Municipal Action Plan for Flood Risk in Mérida (PAM) during its ordinary session on September 24, 2026, by unanimous vote of those present. The agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Badajoz number 187, corresponding to Wednesday, September 30, 2026, under Announcement 3778/2026, within the Local Administration section. The Plan establishes the organization and procedures to provide a coordinated response to pre-emergency and emergency flood situations throughout the entire municipal district.

The proposal was presented by the Second Deputy Mayor and Delegated Councilor for General Administration, Julio César Fuster Flores, and is framed within the mandate of INUNCAEX, the Special Civil Protection Plan for Flood Risk in Extremadura, which requires certain municipalities, including Mérida, to have their own action plan based on their level of risk. The file includes the technical document of the Plan, the favorable report from the Permanent Civil Protection Commission of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura —issued in the session of August 25, 2026—, the certification from its Secretariat, and Annex I containing the components of the organizational structure.

A plan developed by municipal technicians and services

The document was drafted by technicians from the company Aquaducto Ingenieros y Servicios Extremeños, authored by Manuel Jesús Castelló Vinagre, Civil Engineer. Its preparation relied on information and collaboration from public and private organizations, as well as the municipal services of Local Police, Parks and Gardens, and Urban Planning.

The Plan is operational, administrative, and organizational in nature: it does not approve a general provision nor does it affect regulatory, budgetary, urban planning, or structural matters reserved for the Plenary. Its scope of application covers the entire municipal district and provides for requesting the mobilization of INUNCAEX resources when municipal resources prove insufficient.

Regulatory basis and content

The development of the Plan is based on the following regulations:

Law 17/2015, of July 9, on the National Civil Protection System.
Royal Decree 524/2023, of June 20, approving the Basic Civil Protection Standard.
Royal Decree 893/2013, of November 15, approving the Basic Guideline for civil protection planning for flood emergencies.
Law 10/2019, of April 11, on civil protection and emergency management of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura.
Decree 32/2023, of April 5, regulating the Registry of Civil Protection Plans of Extremadura.
INUNCAEX, Special Civil Protection Plan for Flood Risk in Extremadura.

Its contents include the identification and assessment of flood risks, land zoning, the detection of vulnerable elements —population, infrastructure, assets, and specially protected areas—, the procedures for activation and mobilization of resources, population protection measures (evacuation, removal, and confinement), mechanisms for informing the public, and the catalog of human and material resources.

Subsequent procedures and structure

The municipal agreement contemplates several actions:

Forward the document to the General Secretariat of Interior, Emergencies, and Civil Protection of the Junta de Extremadura to register the Plan in the Civil Protection Plans Registry of the Autonomous Community.
Notify the agreement to the individuals, bodies, and entities of the PAM’s organic structure, both management and operational.
Publish the approval in the Official Gazette of the Province of Badajoz.
Execute the actions for implementation, dissemination, training, exercises, simulations, review, and maintenance of the Plan’s operability.
Forward the agreement to the Local Police, Parks and Gardens, Urban Planning, Public Works, Civil Protection, Social Services, Information Office, Audit, and Treasury.
Entrust the General Administration Delegation with the necessary procedures for its execution.

The Plan distinguishes between a management structure and an operational structure, in accordance with the list included in its Annex I.

The approval of the PAM provides Mérida with a specific civil protection planning instrument against a risk that affects its entire municipal district. The Plan determines who decides, with what means, and how municipal and regional services are coordinated in the event of a flood, and incorporates a calendar for training, simulations, and review to maintain its operability.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Badajoz, no. 187, September 30, 2026, Local Administration, pp. 2-6 (official reference: Announcement 3778/2026).