Construction of 1,200 new homes could be put on hold to protect 70 street cats in Spain
A judge has ordered the works, which had already started, to stop in order to protect the colonies of felines. But the court requires a guarantee of 20,000 euros from the two animal welfare associations involved in the case which they don't have
Doménico Chiappe
Madrid
Wednesday, 13 December 2023, 17:22
A colony of some 70 street cats has forced construction work on 1,200 new homes to be put on hold in Spain's Alicante province.
Residents in Altea said the cats, grouped into six colonies, are becoming traumatised by the heavy machinery and noise in the area. "Some colonies are ten years old, others five or six. But they are all registered," said Raphaela Fischer, president of Bigatos, one of the two associations that went to court to stop development in the area.
In May, the town planning councillor José Orozco put forward plans for an urban estate and estimated it would be ready in 18 months, but that timeline is no longer certain. The area, about the size of 60 football fields, is, according to a local study, occupied by 70 cats who are "now terrified". "They don't always come now when called to be fed. And, if they do come, they are very nervous, they look around nervously. They won't let us touch them. The building works generate a lot of stress for them and affect their immune and nervous systems. There are also several missing cats," the report added.
Slow relocation
Bigatos and Somos Gos, the association involved in the protection of the cats, also went to court where a judge ordered construction be put on hold. "It is the first time that an urban plan of a town council is judicially halted to protect feline colonies," said Eloi Sarrió, the lawyer representing the associations.
The relocation of the cats is now another issue that must be solved and involves slowly moving their feeding points away from the construction zone. "It's not something that can be done with the work in progress," Sarrió said. "The municipality must provide for their transfer in a safe way," she added.
As discussions continue on where the cats can be moved to, bulldozers and lorries continue moving through the area as the ruling of judge Salvador Bellmont requires a guarantee of 20,000 euros from the two animal welfare associations. "It's money that we do not have," Fischer said.
