Valdepiélagos fines up to 3,000 euros for uncleared plots

The Valdepiélagos City Council has finalized the Municipal Ordinance Regulating the cleaning, clearing, conservation, fencing, maintenance, and safety and health conditions of plots, parcels, lands, gardens, and private trees, published in full in the Official Gazette of the Community of Madrid no. 252, dated October 22, 2026 (reference BOCM-20261022-66). The text reaches the gazette after no allegations were presented during the public exhibition period, which automatically finalized the plenary agreement adopted on July 23, 2026. The regulation will enter into force once its full text is published and the period provided for in article 65.2 of Law 7/1985, of April 2, Regulating the Bases of Local Regime has elapsed.

A duty of permanent conservation throughout the year

According to its preamble, the ordinance arises from the problems that the abandonment of private plots and parcels generates in the municipality: proliferation of weeds and dry vegetation, accumulation of waste and belongings, appearance of pests and vectors, risk of fire in the urban-forest interface, and deterioration of the urban landscape. The City Council relies on local autonomy and article 25.2 of Law 7/1985, and specifies the duty of conservation under article 15 of the consolidated text of the Land and Urban Rehabilitation Law and articles 168 to 170 of Law 9/2001, of July 17, on Land of the Community of Madrid.

Article 6 establishes a duty of permanent conservation, enforceable at any time of the year and not only on a specific date. Additionally, article 7 establishes an annual preventive campaign: before May 31 of each year, parcels and lands must be cleared, cleaned, and free of dry vegetation or combustible material, in coordination with the high-risk period for forest fires. The Mayor’s Office may advance or specify these dates via official proclamation.

Who it binds and which lands it covers

The scope of application is broad and covers urban plots, built and unbuilt parcels, urban and developable land—including sectors of land suitable for urbanization under the Subsidiary Norms—patios, gardens, private open spaces, common areas, parcels of urbanizations and separate nuclei, and plant facades, hedges, and branches that encroach upon the public domain.

The obligated parties, according to article 5, are:

• Landowners.
• Usufructuaries and holders of other real rights of use or enjoyment.
• Homeowners’ associations regarding common elements and areas.
• Urban conservation entities, within the scope of their statutes.
• Possessors or users who are legally responsible for maintenance.
• Vacant estates and communities of assets, through their administration or representation.
• Legal entities as holders and public administrations as owners.

Fines from 100 to 3,000 euros and subsidiary execution at the owner’s expense

The general municipal sanctioning regime, supported by articles 139 to 141 of Law 7/1985, distinguishes three scales:

• Minor infractions: from 100 to 750 euros.
• Serious infractions: from 751 to 1,500 euros.
• Very serious infractions: from 1,501 to 3,000 euros.

The regulation reserves the behaviors typified by sectoral legislation to the competent administration, without duplicating types or amounts. Regarding urban forestry, it refers to Law 8/2005, of December 26, with fines from 300 to 10,000 euros (minor), from 10,001 to 100,000 euros (serious), and from 100,001 to 500,000 euros (very serious) for unauthorized felling of protected trees. In urban land, any specimen over ten years old or with a trunk diameter of more than twenty centimeters is considered protected.

In the event of non-compliance, the City Council will issue an execution order—a non-sanctioning police act—following a hearing of at least ten days, with indicative deadlines of 24 to 72 hours if the risk is serious and imminent, five to ten days if it is high, and ten to twenty days for ordinary cleaning. If not executed, the Council may act subsidiarily and charge the full cost to the obligated party, an amount compatible with the fine.

Inspection, complaints, and coordination with other administrations

Municipal technical services, the Local Police, and designated inspection personnel will monitor compliance, either ex officio or via complaints from individuals, with access to the land and the ability to gather data from the Cadastre and the Property Registry to identify holders. The City Council will coordinate its actions with the Community of Madrid, the Civil Guard, forestry agents, and fire services, and will transfer the facts to the competent administration when the sanctioning power does not belong to it.

The text is signed in Valdepiélagos, on October 15, 2026, by the mayor-president, Pedro José Cabrera Cabrera.

The ordinance affects all landowners in the municipality and turns the cleaning of plots into a continuous obligation, rather than a seasonal one: anyone who does not clear brush by May 31 or maintains a plot that poses a risk to health or safety is subject to fines, to the City Council carrying out the work on their behalf and charging the bill, as well as potentially much higher regional sanctions if there is damage to protected trees.

Source: Official Gazette of the Community of Madrid, no. 252, October 22, 2026, section III (Local Administration), pp. 200-212 (official reference: BOCM-20261022-66).