Megafarms in Castilla-La Mancha

Question for written answer E-001259/2018 to the Commission Rule 130 Florent Marcellesi (Verts/ALE) Subject: Megafarms in Castilla-La Mancha Between 2010 and February 2018, the government of CastillaLa Mancha authorised the construction of numerous megafarms across this autonomous community. Many are located in areas protected under the Natura 2000 network, covered under Directives 92/43/EEC and 2011/92/EU that oblige the authorities to conduct an exhaustive assessment ruling out any negative effects on the environment and natural habitats prior to authorising any economic activities in these areas. However, the installation of these megafarms affects the Natura 2000 network both directly and indirectly as a result of this failure to carry out a specific prior impact assessment and their spreading of slurry within SPAs in breach of the aforementioned directives. (1) Is the Commission aware that numerous concessions have been granted for the construction of megafarms in areas protected under the Natura 2000 network in CastillaLa Mancha? (2) What measures does the Commission intend to take to ensure compliance with EU law, which has been infringed in this case? (3) Does the Commission believe the exponential growth of megafarms to be compatible with the greening of agriculture and the improvement of animal welfare?