The recent approval of Decree-Law No. 117/2024, of December 30, Soil Law, brought significant changes to the Legal Regime of Territorial Management Instruments (RJIGT) in Portugal, allowing the reclassification of rustic land to urban land with the objective of increasing the housing supply. However, this measure has generated a wave of criticism due to the potential environmental, social and economic impacts.
What does the new legislation provide?
The main change introduced by the new law is the possibility of simplified reclassification of rural land to urban land, as long as it is intended for housing, as explained by . This decision becomes the responsibility of the municipal councils, eliminating the need for central approval. The Government argues that this decentralization will allow:
- Facilitate the construction of affordable housing for the middle class;
- Promote social equity, with controlled prices;
- Increase housing supply in high demand areas.
To ensure balance, the law requires that at least 70% of construction areas in new projects be dedicated to public or moderately priced housing. Furthermore, the legislation prohibits construction in areas of high environmental risk, such as areas protected by the National Ecological Reserve (REN) and the National Agricultural Reserve (RAN). However, land with moderate or limited agricultural suitability and places with risks of erosion or compromised drainage can be urbanized.
Controversies and criticism
Despite the Government’s intentions to resolve the housing crisis, the new Soil Law has generated controversy. Experts and environmentalists point to possible negative consequences:
1. Real estate speculation
Flexibility in the reclassification of land can increase the value of rustic properties for real estate purposes, moving them away from productive uses, such as agriculture.
2. Environmental impacts
Organizations such as Quercus and Zero warn of the risks of uncontrolled urbanization, which could worsen the climate crisis and cause the loss of key agricultural land.
3. Disordered growth
Rede H and other critical groups point out that the measure could lead to territorial fragmentation, harming consolidated urban centers and promoting disorganized peripheral expansion.
Associated risks
The new legislation eliminates the requirement to prove the economic sustainability and unavailability of urban land before reclassifying rural land. This can result in:
- Disorderly urbanization, with fragmentation of essential rural landscapes;
- Reduced food security due to the conversion of productive agricultural land;
- Irreversible environmental impacts, especially in already vulnerable areas.
Alternative solutions
Critics of the measure suggest more sustainable alternatives, such as:
- Rehabilitation of vacant properties in urban centers;
- Reconversion of commercial and office buildings for housing.
Organizations such as the League for the Protection of Nature (LPN) advocate a greater focus on urban rehabilitation, which combines sustainability with a more efficient use of existing land.
The future of legislation
The diploma is now in the parliamentary review phase and may undergo changes or even be revoked. The debate on territorial management and housing accessibility remains lively, with divergent opinions between those who see the law as an urgent solution to the housing crisis and those who warn of its potential negative effects.
Although the measure aims to alleviate pressure on the housing market, the challenges of ensuring a balance between accessibility, sustainability and responsible territorial planning place the new Soil Law at the center of a fundamental discussion for the country’s future.
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