Villazanzo de Valderaduey fines uncleaned plots with up to 3,000 euros

The City Council of Villazanzo de Valderaduey has finalized the municipal Ordinance regulating the cleaning of plots and fencing of sites for the prevention of fires in the urban-forest interface, published in the Official Gazette of the Province of León no. 180, of September 21, 2026 (reference BOP-LE-2026-180016). The regulation requires all owners within the municipal district to clear sites and plots before June 1 of each year and provides for fines of up to 3,000 euros. The text will enter into force once published in full in the gazette and after 15 business days have elapsed.

The ordinance was automatically finalized as no claims were filed during the public exhibition period, according to the announcement signed by Mayor Silvia López Campos in Villazanzo de Valderaduey on September 17, 2026. The initial plenary agreement is now published in full for general knowledge, in compliance with Article 70.2 of Law 7/1985, of April 2, regulating the Bases of the Local Regime.

The preamble justifies the regulation based on the 2025 summer season, which was “exceptional in the number and intensity of forest fires,” and rural depopulation. It is issued under Article 15 of Royal Legislative Decree 7/2015, of October 30, Article 8 of Law 5/1999, of April 8, on Urbanism of Castilla y León, and Article 19 of Decree 22/2004, of January 29, as well as the municipal competence of Article 25.2.f) of Law 7/1985, within the framework of the INFOCAL Plan (Decree 6/2025, of March 27). It completes the previous ordinance published in BOP no. 181, of September 23, 2025, and prevails over it in any contradictory matters.

Mandatory cleaning before June 1 and 50-meter strips

Cleaning and clearing must be completed before June 1 of each year and is jointly required from owners, usufructuaries, tenants, and concessionaires; in case of doubt or impossibility of locating the user, the obligation falls upon the cadastral holder or, failing that, the registered owner. The required works are:

• Removal of grass, shrubs, scrub, brambles, and weeds, and any dry vegetation or vegetation at risk of drying out.
• Pruning of trees and shrubs, including the removal of low branches up to 2 meters from the ground and their removal from the plot.
• Removal of garbage, rubble, and combustible materials.

The ordinance requires a security perimeter strip of at least 50 meters around buildings, with a distance between crowns of 2 to 3 meters, scrub height equal to or less than 20 centimeters, and a non-combustible strip of at least 1 meter next to facades and fencing. Plots must be fenced with non-combustible material and closed to at least 1 meter in height, with simple access for municipal intervention. The scope includes urban, developable, and adjacent rural plots and parcels, the urban-forest interface areas of Annex I (map R1–R3), and the edges of roads and recreational areas.

Prohibitions and management of plant remains

The burning of plant remains as a habitual cleaning method is prohibited; only controlled burns are permitted under the cases specified in regional regulations, during authorized periods, and subject to prior authorization and notification to the City Council. Remains must be managed through on-site shredding, removal by an authorized manager, or controlled stockpiling on the plot for a maximum of 15 days, in piles located at least 15 meters away from buildings, roads, and forest boundaries, and not exceeding 1.5 meters in height.

It is also prohibited to use machinery or tools that generate sparks during “red days” of extreme risk without express authorization, to light bonfires, portable barbecues, recreational fires, or pyrotechnics in the urban-forest interface, to accumulate garbage, plastics, tires, rubble, or wood on unconditioned plots, and to throw cigarette butts, glass, or incandescent objects on plots or roads.

Requirements, subsidiary execution, and sanctions

Municipal services will carry out ordinary inspections in spring and special monitoring in June, with reports that will have the status of a public document. In the event of non-compliance, the City Council will notify an individualized requirement with a maximum period of 10 calendar days; if this period expires without compliance, a subsidiary execution file and sanctioning procedure will be opened.

If the obligated party does not act or does so deficiently, the City Council will execute the works at their expense, with a reference cost of 0.05 euros per square meter, and will fully charge the expenses, including management, administrative, and notification costs. Collection via executive proceedings will be carried out through the Collection services of the Provincial Council. Fines are graded as follows:

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

In very serious infractions with imminent risk, the City Council may agree to the sealing of plots, urgent subsidiary execution, and the referral of the facts to the judicial authority. Against the agreement, which is final in the administrative process, a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Castilla y León based in Burgos within a period of two months.

The regulation turns the cleaning of plots into a verifiable annual obligation for all owners in the municipality, featuring municipal inspection, execution at the owner’s expense, and financial penalties. For the residents of Villazanzo de Valderaduey, this implies advancing the work to the month of May, maintaining 50-meter strips in interface zones, and preserving documentary or graphic evidence of the cleaning if requested by the City Council.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of León, no. 180, September 21, 2026, Local Administration, p. 46 (official reference: BOP-LE-2026-180016).