Every 31 hours, a new villa is finished on rustic land in Mallorca. This means five per week in areas that should be designated for agricultural or natural uses, according to Terraferida's complaint. If we add the available data from Ibiza, we find that between the two islands, a new rustic house is finished every day. This is an accelerated process of land transformation that is no longer occasional but structural. Environmentalists are calling for it to be stopped immediately in Mallorca and the Pitiusas, as Menorca did more than 20 years ago, and for rustic land, considered "the crown jewel of the land," to be declared non-buildable, says Terraferida spokesperson Jaume Adrover.

Mallorca has 55,256 homes built on rural land, 15,817 of which could be contrary to current urban planning regulations, according to data from the project Houses That Don't Exist, presented this Monday to the Official College of Architects of the Balearic Islands. The research, led by urban planner Miquel Rosselló Xamena, puts figures to a phenomenon often invisible in public debate: the proliferation of homes on rural land.

The Friends of the Coanegra Valley Association has filed objections against the proposed second lithium-ion battery energy storage plant on a rural plot in Santa Maria del Camí. The group rejects the initiative and questions whether it can be processed as a project of strategic industrial interest. The protest comes after the Regional Ministry of Business, Self-Employment, and Energy opened the public consultation period for the application for this designation and the authorization of the project, called Bess Santa Maria. The association believes the facility lacks the public interest that would justify this administrative treatment. According to the association, it is a "private and speculative activity with the sole purpose of profit," lacking a production process, stable job creation, and integration within the local energy plan. For this reason, they argue that it does not meet the requirements to be considered of strategic interest. The group also maintains that the project cannot be located on rural land. They point out that legislation only exceptionally permits this type of installation for industrial facilities linked to renewable energy production, a category in which, according to their interpretation, the planned plant does not fit. Furthermore, they believe the initiative implies an inappropriate use of common rural land, which—they emphasize—should be designated for agricultural, livestock, or forestry activities. In this regard, they assert that the installation is incompatible with the urban planning classification of the area and that, in any case, it would require a Declaration of General Interest and the mandatory territorial report from the Consell de Mallorca (Island Council of Mallorca). The organization also denounces that the project encroaches on the municipal powers of the Santa Maria del Camí City Council regarding urban planning. They indicate that the initiative lacks any favorable report and has not been validated by the municipal governing board or the mayor. According to the association, the proposal contradicts the municipality's political and urban planning guidelines and violates the principle of local autonomy, in addition to failing to respect the criteria for citizen participation and transparency in the selection of locations for energy infrastructure. In this regard, they denounce the fact that the plant's location has not been consulted or negotiated with neighborhood associations or local institutional representatives. Environmental and safety risks

Among the arguments presented in their objections, the group also warns of the potential environmental and safety risks associated with this type of facility. They explain that the potential leaks of toxic gases or liquids in the event of a thermal failure, which could affect vegetation, soil, and aquifers, have not been adequately assessed. The association believes the project violates the precautionary principle, as it would be located in an area with no prior industrial use, which, in their opinion, would entail a significant transformation of the environment. They also emphasize that the proposed plot has high ecological value and forms part of the agricultural and landscape mosaic located between the municipalities of Consell and Santa Maria del Camí. Finally, the group warns that lithium-ion batteries carry potential risks, such as explosions, difficult-to-extinguish fires resulting from thermal runaways, the emission of toxic gases harmful to human and animal health, and possible chemical contamination of waterways.

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The environmental organization Terraferida denounced on Tuesday the rural urbanization process taking place in Mallorca, where 15 square kilometers have been urbanized between 2015 and 2025, an area equivalent to the entire Cabrera archipelago. Terraferida launched a manifesto on Tuesday calling for the protection of areas outside of villas and photovoltaic power plants, as the first step in a campaign that will take them to municipalities to inform residents with data and images about the rural urbanization process affecting the island.

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Building permits issued in the Balearic Islands increased by 27.9% in 2025 compared to 2024, a growth driven, in part, by the extraordinary legalizations of buildings on rural land approved by the Balearic Government, as the Official College of Architects of the Balearic Islands pointed out this Tuesday. In this regard, during the presentation of the Housing Observatory held this Tuesday at a press conference, experts indicated that without the effect of the extraordinary legalizations, the increase would have been 5.7%, meaning there would have been 22.2% fewer projects. They explained that this increase is linked to the extraordinary regularization processes for buildings on rural land provided for in Decree Law 3/2024 and Law 7/2024, concerning housing and administrative simplification, respectively.

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The primary sector in the Balearic Islands is struggling with problems that have worsened over the years. Drought, health alerts, the permissiveness of the authorities in allowing inappropriate uses of rural land, and a lack of generational leadership are some of them. The few remaining workers in the primary sector are looking for ways to survive, while the debate about the importance of agriculture, fishing, and livestock farming for preserving the territory and the environmental sustainability of the Balearic Islands is increasingly prominent.

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At the beginning of the 21st century, the Balearic countryside was still reeling from the consequences of the rural exodus it suffered mainly in the second half of the 20th century. The expansion of mass tourism recruited many workers from the primary sector. In addition to the loss of labor, during the first quarter of the century farmers had to face the crisis of the traditional agricultural model, price disparities with the mainland, the loss of rural land, and adverse weather events, among other problems. However, in a sense, Balearic society has become more aware of the importance of the primary sector in the Islands, which has had to reinvent itself to survive. Nevertheless, Foravila has accumulated regulations, bureaucracy, and problems that are increasingly stifling it. "We are worse off than at the beginning of the century," summarizes Joana Mascaró, manager of Unió de Petits Agricultors i Ganaders (UPA-AIA). Foravila is becoming a wasteland

The loss of agricultural workers led to the abandonment of the land and also of traditional monocultures. In fact, 99% of the dryland almond trees that years ago produced Mallorca's almonds no longer exist. In the early 2000s, the rural countryside began to be perceived socially as a landscape rather than as productive land. "The countryside became a vacant lot with the arrival of city dwellers, speculators, and people who wanted to live in luxury," explains Miquel Gual, president of the San Bartolomé de Sóller Agricultural Cooperative. Furthermore, this problem, which began around the year 2000, has worsened with the increased tolerance of the authorities in authorizing certain uses that are inappropriate for rural areas. According to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the Balearic Islands have lost 28,500 hectares of agricultural land and 1,700 farms in ten years (from 2013 to 2023). Regarding agricultural products, between 2015 and 2020, production decreased for cereals (from 49,341 to 48,937 tons), legumes (from 3,090 to 2,057 tons), tubers (from 58,284 to 8,284 tons), citrus fruits (from 10,739 to 6,535 tons), stone fruits (from 2,031 to 1,200 tons), nuts (from 7,364 to 3,956 tons), and vegetables (from 5 to 5,000 tons). The livestock sector is not immune to this decline. Mascaró points out that "in Mallorca, only 10% of the dairy farms that existed around the year 2000 remain." Regarding milk production, he explains that in the same period, production has fallen from 40 million liters per year to seven million. All of this has led to the disappearance of feed mills and other activities related to the sector, while others face an uncertain future, as is the case with Agama. Boom in organic farming

For the first 25 years of this century, the trend toward organic farming was the complete opposite of that of traditional agriculture. In 2000, the area dedicated to organic farming in the Balearic Islands was 3,455 hectares, according to data published by the Balearic Council for Organic Agricultural Production (CBPAE). That figure has increased significantly. In 2024, organic farming reached 50,542 registered hectares, and compared to 2023, it added 43 new operators, reaching a total of 1,301. These figures demonstrate that "organic farming in the Balearic Islands has ceased to be an ideology," celebrates Joan Gaià, coordinator of Unió de Pagesos (Farmers' Union). At the beginning of the implementation of this model, farmers questioned its profitability, since the products used are more expensive. But over the years, farmers have found that organic techniques mitigate the effects of climate change and also make better use of the Balearic Islands' natural resources, which have dwindled over the past 25 years. That's why Gaià points out that organic farming "is the future of the Balearic countryside." Along the same lines, he insists that "for things to go well" in the next 25 years, "conventional agriculture should almost disappear, although some of its practices should be preserved."

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The artificialization of the Balearic Islands' territory has increased by 65% in less than 30 years (1990-2018). This is one of the most striking conclusions drawn from the analysis of data from the European system that tracks land use changes, the Corine Land Cover project, carried out by geographer Marta Pieras. According to the specialist, the figures paint a picture of "runaway land consumption that reflects a very worrying model." Between 1990 and 2018, the area occupied by urban zones, infrastructure, and areas linked to tourism has grown steadily, while crops and the landscape are disappearing at an alarming rate, according to the same analysis.

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The Mallorca Territorial Defense Agency has demolished several buildings, installations, and paving erected on a rural property and intended as an animal shelter, after confirming that they lacked any municipal building permits. According to the Agency, these structures occupied a significant portion of the land and had not obtained any authorization for their construction. Following the appropriate procedures, the structures were demolished, and the land has been restored to its previous natural state. According to current urban planning regulations, any building or installation intended to house animals requires prior municipal authorization. The Agency reminds the public that, although some owners attempt to justify these types of constructions as "houses" or for other uses, these spaces are also subject to licensing, especially when located on rural land.

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The Balearic Islands have faced a new threat in recent months that could add a deluge of industrial facilities, iron, and concrete to the already damaged rural landscape. To the haphazard development of villas and the solar farms that have been disfiguring the islands in recent years, another concept has now been added: lithium battery storage facilities that various developers, mainly investment funds and energy sector companies, are pushing across the region. According to data confirmed to ARA Baleares by the Balearic Government, 34 projects are already being processed, 18 of which are specifically planned for rural land, while the rest are planned for industrial or urban areas.

]]> When the territorial map of the Balearic Islands was drawn up with relatively restrictive regulations, some affected parties took full advantage. For decades, they had tried to develop their land because it meant multiplying their wealth. The kind of urban planning scheme some, though not all, landowners dream of. This led, for example, to the infamous Reconversion Areas invented by Maria Antònia Munar. These were tailor-made rezonings with absurd justifications. If a hotel could be built in the north of Mallorca, a housing development could be built in the south. Fortunately, the GOB (Balearic Ornithological Group) and the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office brought order to the situation, and although the legal case was dismissed, it was enough to put an end to the farce.

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The owners of a dozen rural plots of land on the outskirts of municipalities like Palma and Calvià, as well as in Ibiza, have already begun taking steps to capitalize on the automatic rezoning promoted by the government of Marga Prohens, which could generate capital gains of over 2,000%. The Land Acquisition Law has prompted various owners and developers to sit down and negotiate, attempting to launch projects given this unique opportunity to secure millions in development rights, ostensibly to build new housing. Some of these transactions have already been announced through public tenders. Others are still being discussed behind closed doors. Most of these plots are not new to the real estate market; their current owners have already attempted to rezone their land.

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The government of Marga Prohens is preparing to submit a new agrarian law to Parliament that, under the umbrella of modernization and diversification, opens a new era in the relationship between the countryside and tourism. If approved, the law will allow all agricultural holdings—managed by someone with a farmer's license—to offer up to ten agroestadas. The left had already authorized six, but the quantitative and qualitative leap is now more profound, because it is not just about rural tourism: the law will also facilitate the construction of agricultural warehouses, some linked to tourism or complementary activities, and the wider installation of solar panels on rural land.

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This past Saturday, the BOIB (Balearic and Urban Development Board) published the approval of the modification of the subsidiary regulations in the Sineu Town Hall to include more specific regulations for intensive livestock farming within the municipality. There is now a 30-day period to submit objections.

]]> This is the initial name of the new platform that emerged in Mallorca following the proposed law on urgent actions to obtain land, promoted by the government under the pretext of exploiting the social crisis in housing. "Mallorca for living, not for speculation" makes it clear, just from the name itself, that it is a clear denunciation of the proposed land liberalization for the construction of new homes, with a significant increase in profit margins for developers and builders and putting on the table the reclassification of rural land in areas with a population of 20,000 that the Territorial Plan of Mallorca defined as "transition areas." This clearly speculative operation means that today, even though not all municipalities have expressed their intention to implement this possibility, it has already increased the prices of rural land, as the president of the Association of Real Estate Agents acknowledged this week: rural land in transition areas has been revalued.

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Unió de Pagesos has reminded the regional minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Environment that "rural land must be dedicated to food production and anything other than this will be considered improper use." The agricultural union reacted after Simonet assured a interview of the ARA Baleares who does not believe "in the systematic prohibition of solar panels and chalets."

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This is the last week in which They will collect signatures against the new land law 4/2025, the regulations of the PP and Vox that will allow the construction of floors on the rustic land of PalmaThis citizen mobilization aims to demand that Palma City Council halt this project, which would lead to the massive urbanization of Ciutat.

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The administrative ingenuity that the People's Party (PP) had concocted to reduce territorial protection and allow for the expansion of the road, the expansion of the beaches, and the establishment of amenities, housing, accommodation, and restaurants on rural land in Menorca has gone down the drain. Just as the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) and, especially, Más por Menorca (Menorca's Workers' Party) in the opposition had already warned, the secretary of the Island Council has overturned the entire framework of the People's Party government by concluding that the modification of 95 of the 140 provisions of the PTI (Proposal for a New Territory) that it promoted "is indicative that the territorial model is being altered. It does not constitute any specific modification. It changes specific modifications. The document, moreover, is full of "contradictions" and should be amended so much so that the technical report and the Secretary's report call for a "thorough review" because "it does not conform to the current legal framework and cannot be brought to a plenary session." It's that clear.

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The GOB (Basque Government) called this Monday for the withdrawal of the current Sa Pobla-Alcúdia train project, which it considers "unsustainable, socially unjust, and legally weak," and demanded a complete redesign with citizen participation and respect for the territory. The organization has demanded its withdrawal within the framework of the public comment period.

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The Mayor of Palma, Jaime Martínez, has assured that the City Council will protect the transition areas surrounding Son Sardina and that no housing will be built.

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