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Luis Martínez de Irujo Hohenlohe-Langenburg
The Eldest Grandson of the Duchess of Alba Under Investigation for Alleged Environmental Crime

The Eldest Grandson of the Duchess of Alba Under Investigation for Alleged Environmental Crime

A court in Sanlúcar la Mayor (Seville) is handling a complaint from the Prosecutor's Office regarding eight allegedly unauthorized wells on the Aljóbar estate, located in the municipality of Aznalcázar and managed by one of the aristocratic family's companies.

R. C.

Sevilla

Martes, 4 de febrero 2025, 23:40

Judicial troubles have arisen for the eldest grandson of the Duchess of Alba due to an alleged environmental crime on an estate managed by one of his companies. The Court of Instruction number one in Sanlúcar la Mayor has summoned Luis Martínez de Irujo Hohenlohe-Langenburg on February 20th at 10:30 AM, in his capacity as a suspect, as he is the legal representative of the company Eurotecnia Agraria. This family business of the Alba family manages the Aljóbar estate, dedicated to orange cultivation, where eight water wells, allegedly unauthorized, have been open for years within the municipal area of Aznalcázar, according to a complaint from the Prosecutor's Office.

For now, the judge in the case has ordered the temporary sealing of the wells, as well as "the removal of pumps and other equipment installed in them for the purpose of extracting water from the Guadalquivir Basin." To this end, the resolution adds, "the use of proportional force is authorized if necessary, with the investigated party being warned of the possible commission of a crime of disobedience to judicial authority if the seal is broken or if the use of these unauthorized wells continues." The Nature Protection Service (SEPRONA) of the Civil Guard will execute these instructions.

According to the order known this Tuesday, "the investigated facts could constitute a possible crime against the environment in relation to the existence of eight wells not authorized by the Guadalquivir Hydrographic Confederation (CHG)." These infrastructures, the instructor specifies, "have been recently sealed by the administrative authority as they were used again without having been legalized or equipped with the required volumetric counters," reports Europa Press.

“Collateral Impact” on Doñana

The actions in this case date back at least a year and a half. In October 2023, Eurotecnia Agraria responded to a complaint from the Prosecutor's Office against the company and also against Eugenia Martínez de Irujo as its president. It did so by dissociating the aristocrat from the management of the company—her brother Luis, it stated then, "is the board member responsible for managing the Aljóbar estate" and she "has never participated in the agricultural exploitation"—and maintaining that the water extraction "has never exceeded the maximum volume approved by the CHG."

In any case, the judge finds possible "indications of substantial environmental damage with these unauthorized water extractions, with collateral impact on the Doñana National Park and, consequently, its birdlife." In this regard, it states that the expert report commissioned on the matter reveals "an overexploitation of the aquifer that can cause environmental damage, such as the actual drop in its piezometric level or a deterioration in the quality of its waters, by mobilizing groundwater or in the compaction of the soil and the salinity of its waters."

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