The Lanzarote Cabildo has assured this Tuesday morning that it is "finalizing" an institutional report to reject the decision of the Government of the Canary Islands to declare of general interest the installation of a photovoltaic plant in Mácher. This decision allows for shorter procedures and, among other points, bypasses the need to request a municipal license.
As it did last week, the island's main institution has insisted that no "declaration of public interest has been applied to this project under article 6 bis of the Land Law," but rather that it has been applied, which, if it proceeds, would imply changes in deadlines and necessary documentation.
According to the documentation that La Voz has been able to access, the Minister of Ecological Transition of the Canary Islands Government, Mariano H. Zapata (PP), signed the order to declare this project of island interest on May 15th to apply article 6 bis of the Canary Islands Land Law.
An extraordinary procedure
Despite this declaration, the Cabildo insists that they have been "only" requested for a report "within the ordinary consultation process provided for in current regulations." However, the application of 6 bis makes it an extraordinary procedure, which the Canary Islands Government has justified by citing the need for an "urgent implementation" of renewable infrastructures to reduce energy costs, contribute to climate projections, and combat climate change.
According to said resolution, the Lanzarote Cabildo and the other involved institutions have a period of one month from receiving the request to submit allegations. For the moment, the Tías City Council has already reported that it has submitted its own, in which it resolves that the project cannot be authorized because it is foreseen on rustic land for agricultural protection and due to its environmental impact.
The Project Tías I Solar Photovoltaic Installation, promoted by the Madrid-based company RS Iberia 23, SL, with headquarters on Paseo de la Castellana, plans to install 1,680 solar panels, a transformation center, and expropriate 36 plots of land. The initiative would occupy 24,117 square meters of a total area of 28,721.
The Minister of Territorial Policy of the Cabildo de Lanzarote, Jesús Machín (CC), has assured that “the request for reports made by the Government of the Canary Islands is part of the ordinary administrative procedure and does not in any case constitute an authorization of the project”. Furthermore, he added that “the Cabildo is preparing its report and the position we will convey will be contrary to this installation because we understand that it does not fit the territorial and energy model that we defend for Lanzarote”.
For the moment, the Ministry of Ecological Transition has not given an official response to this situation.
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