Santanyí council moves to protect coastal pinewood

Vidal said that the laws affect six plots of land on a hillside which, in the event, were never built on. He explained that one of the options the council has to secure the protection of the area is to urge the Council of Majorca to modify its Territory Plan within three months to stop the construction of homes within fifty metres of the shoreline.

The Mayor of Santanyi said that he was well aware that the President of the Council of Majorca Maria Salom was not happy about changes to the island's Territory Plan but be believes that an exception may be made in this instance because it's a matter of environmental protection.

Keeping the cove “unspoiled” He pointed out that Central Government's Coastal department doesn't hold sway in Caló d'en Boira - part of Cala Figuera - as it does elsewhere because the planning laws predate its power, and the landowners have been paying taxes since 1985. “It just so happens,” said Vidal, “that the full coastal development never went ahead even though it would have been perfectly legal.” “It's a question of wanting to stop the pine grove and natural cove being destroyed,” said the Mayor who furthered that he didn't look so favourably on the second option which is to expropriate the land from its owners at a cost of 18 million euros. “It's a huge sum which the council simply doesn't have,” he claimed.

The Mayor confirmed that in any event, within the next few days, he is to approach the Council of Majorca over the first option of modifying the Territory Plan which will involve setting up an agreement between Santanyi town council and the land owners in Caló d'en Boira.

The town council wants to propose that the six plots of land be kept in their unspoiled condition in exchange for the land owners being able to make use of municipal plots of land elsewhere.