Santa Maria de Besora

Can you build a house on rustic land?

Catalonia allows no new houses on rustic land. Restoring an existing or listed building is the way.

DL 1/2010, art. 47. A town plan can be stricter.

Plan in force: Normas Subsidiarias (an older, simpler plan), from 1987. The region's planning viewer ↗

The national urban information system (SIU) maps the land class for 100% of the municipality.

Only the town hall can confirm it, in writing: ask for a certificado urbanístico.

Is there water?

No well or borehole is recorded in Santa Maria de Besora. That is not proof there is no water: ask local drillers. 2 springs are recorded.

Ground: 95% low permeability, local groundwater only.

Choosing where to drill takes a hydrogeologist.

What to watch for

• No mapped fire since 2016.
• 1.5% of the municipality lies in the 100-year flood zone; 1.5% in the 500-year one.
• 1.5% of the municipality is preferential flow zone, where new building is generally banned.
• 56% of the municipality is Natura 2000: new works need the region's consent.
• 56% of the municipality is a protected natural area, whose plan limits what can be done.
• Not a radon zone.
• Basic seismic acceleration 0.09 g: new buildings need seismic design.

Living here

• 4G reaches 100% of homes; fibre 83%. Averages for the municipality.
• Rain: 693 mm a year (1971–2000), about 602 by 2041–2070.
• Summer highs: 25.4 °C, about 29 °C by 2041–2070.
• Frost days: 96 a year, about 63 by 2041–2070.

Around it

Sant Quirze de Besora · Vidrà · Montesquiu · Sant Pere de Torelló · Ripoll · les Llosses