Canillo landowners protest Sant Joan de Caselles protection zones

Property owners in Canillo are criticizing newly approved protection zones surrounding the Sant Joan de Caselles church, describing the measures as "disproportionate."

The protection areas, which cover approximately 260,000 square meters—roughly 360 times the surface area of the church itself—extend from the fire station to the Molesi waterfall climbing wall and include the village of El Vilar.

Owners argue that the delimitation lacks sufficient technical justification, noting a lack of visual studies, topography, or simulations to support the specific boundaries. They expressed a "profound feeling of injustice," stating that the land is subject to new usage limitations without any form of compensation, despite their ancestors having historically ceded land to allow for the church's construction.