Hunting fence in Sierra Morena divides the Navas de la Condesa estate

The Provincial Delegation of Sustainable Development of Ciudad Real has resolved that the project to install a section of hunting fencing in the hunting estate CR-10.119 “Navas de la Condesa” does not need to undergo an ordinary environmental impact assessment, as it is estimated that it does not produce significant effects provided that the established conditions are met. The decision is detailed in the Resolution of 08/17/2026, published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha (DOCM) number 163, dated August 26, 2026, within the section of Other Provisions and Acts of the Ministry of Sustainable Development.

The report, signed by the provincial delegate Agustín Espinosa Romero, is processed under file S478/2025/CR/00089 and affects a fenced area of 5,500 hectares located in the municipality of Viso del Marqués (Ciudad Real), promoted by the company El Retamoso de La Mancha 2, S.L.

A fence that splits the estate in two

The project consists of installing a section of hunting fencing of 5,665 meters which, anchored to the existing perimeter fence, will run through the central area of the estate in an east-west direction and divide it into two independent halves:

• The northern half, with 2,790 hectares, will be dedicated to the promotion of small game hunting, particularly the red-legged partridge.
• The southern half, with 2,710 hectares, will be oriented toward big game hunting.

The project also includes the dismantling of an existing fence section of 3,465 meters, meaning the net length of additional fencing will be 2,200 meters. The new fence will be a knotted metal mesh 2 meters high with a 220/16/30 design, without visors or cutting elements, and will maintain a separation of 15 centimeters in its lower area to allow the passage of non-game fauna.

Impact on the Natura 2000 Network and the Iberian lynx

The layout does not affect protected natural spaces, but it does pass through the area of the SCI/SPA ES0000090 “Sierra Morena”, belonging to the Natura 2000 Network and with a management plan approved by the Order of 12/27/2016 of the Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Development. According to that plan, practically the entire fence runs through a compatible use zone.

The fencing also affects critical areas for the survival of the Iberian lynx, the Spanish imperial eagle, and the booted eagle, endangered species with recovery plans approved in Castilla-La Mancha. Therefore, the resolution mandates that the works be carried out outside the most sensitive period of reproduction and breeding, with a minimum exclusion zone of 500 meters around active nesting platforms.

Conditions and monitoring

The report incorporates preventive and corrective measures that must be included in the substantive authorization. Among the main ones:

• Prior review of the entirety of the hunting estate’s perimeter fencing, replacing sections that pose a risk of entanglement or cuts to wildlife.
• Notification of the start of works at least 10 days in advance to the environmental and substantive bodies.
• Archaeological control of earthworks in the sector with a protection area, subject to prior authorization from the Culture Service.
• Strict compliance with the authorization from the Guadalquivir Hydrographic Confederation (file 13098/1641/2025/01) for the crossing of the Arroyo de la Gorita and an unnamed stream.
• Environmental monitoring for at least three years, including control of fence permeability and bird collisions.

During the processing, consultations were answered by the Natural Environment Service, the Guadalquivir Hydrographic Confederation, the Culture Service, the City Council of Viso del Marqués, and the Provincial Coordination Unit of Environmental Agents, while Ecologistas en Acción, SEO/Birdlife, and the Natural History Society of Ciudad Real did not issue a response.

The environmental impact report will be valid for four years from its publication, extendable for two more, and shall not be appealable via administrative channels, without prejudice to any appropriate appeals against the future authorization of the project. The decision is key for hunters and conservationists, as it establishes the balance between hunting management and the protection of threatened species in one of the most sensitive sites in the province.

Source: Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, no. 163, August 26, 2026, section III (Other Provisions and Acts), page 31035 (official reference: 2026/6246).