The Ministry of Housing, Public Works and Vertebration of the Territory is preparing a guide for the application of the Territorial Action Plan on Flood Risk Prevention in the Valencian Community (PATRICOVA), within the framework of its powers in land management. The purpose of the guide is "to clarify concepts regarding flood risk, improve legal certainty, and establish clear and equitable rules of application of the Patricova regulations".
For the Director General of Planning, Urban Planning and Landscape, Lluís Ferrando, this initiative promoted by the Generalitat arises before the doubts and uncertainties that is causing the application of the new Regulation of Public Domain Hydraulics promoted by the Ministry of Public Works.
This new state framework is confusing, difficult to interpret and practically declassifies all floodable soils that are in rural basic situation, although they may be classified as urbanizable or even urban. The Generalitat and some municipalities have filed an administrative litigation against this decree.
The drafting of this guide is due to clarify the competence framework and the action of the Generalitat in this matter and, for this reason, has ensured that "It is counted on the participation of the municipalities of the Comunitat for the elaboration of the methodological and practical guide".
Collaboration of all municipalities
The Generalitat has sent a letter to all municipalities of the Community, opening a process of participation until the 15 in September in which they are asked to raise doubts or practical problems of application of flood regulations in their municipality.
The guide will collect, among other contents, a specific section of answers to the most frequent problems. For this reason the participation of the Town Halls is very important, so that the content of the guide adapts to the real problems of the territory. At this point, the director general has stated that the department that directs María José Salvador, "Has been a pioneer in bringing together municipalities, unlike other similar documents prepared by other administrations".
Ferrando recalled that the guide will propose new constructive solutions for the adaptation of buildings, both existing and new, to the flood, "in order to avoid damage to people, property and the environment."
Other important points in the guide are the application of transitional regimes, the clarification of the competence framework, the overlapping and prevalence of different cartographies, flooding and the effects of climate change. In addition, the guidelines for the development of flood studies, the geomorphological risk, the requirements for the declaration of a highly dangerous municipality, and all the aspects that municipalities consider important for the adaptation of their plans to the risk of Flooding.
