Press release:

Official College of Biologists of Castilla-La Mancha

The Official College of Biologists of Castilla-La Mancha COB-CLM has sent a letter to the President of the Regional Government of Castilla-La Mancha, Mr. García-Page, demanding an end to the systematic discrimination against biologists that occurs in the Ministry of Sustainable Development and a change in the personnel policy that excludes biologists from most civil service positions in the Deputy Ministry of the Environment and the Directorate General of Natural Environment and Biodiversity, with responsibilities in flora and fauna, habitats, hunting and fishing, among others.

Likewise, the immediate dismissal of the Deputy Minister of the Environment is requested due to his arbitrary actions and lack of impartiality, failing in his duty to safeguard public service and the general interest by systematically favoring the forestry engineers' association, to which he belongs. His management is harming other environmental professions, among which biologists play a fundamental role, especially when it comes to issues of biodiversity conservation (flora, fauna, habitats).

Regarding the personnel policy of the Ministry of Sustainable Development, the already limited number of positions for biologists is decreasing, as our degree is excluded from most positions listed in the Job Classification List (RPT). Furthermore, very few Biology positions are advertised through competitive examinations, since the vast majority of vacant and/or temporary positions in the natural environment sector are filled by forestry engineers. In fact, in the Directorate General for Natural Environment and Biodiversity and its provincial offices, 90% of civil servant positions and 100% of Area and Service Head positions (appointed at will) are currently held by forestry engineers.

This discriminatory situation has once again come to light in the new draft of the Regulations for the Hunting Law of Castilla-La Mancha, submitted for public comment after the High Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha (TSJ-CLM) and the Supreme Court annulled the previous Decree 15/2022 of these Regulations. Specifically, the annulled Article 4 stipulated that only forestry engineers are competent to carry out work related to hunting, excluding biologists and other environmental professionals "by decree." The High Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha, in ruling 0007/2025, upheld the administrative appeal filed by the General Council of Colleges of Biologists of Spain and the Official College of Biologists of Castilla-La Mancha and declared the aforementioned article null and void. Subsequently, the Supreme Court, in another ruling, declared the Decree null and void in its entirety.

Surprisingly, the new draft Hunting Regulations Decree maintains the exact text of Article 4, which has been expressly annulled by the High Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha (TSJ-CLM). In response to the new allegations recently submitted by the COB-CLM the Deputy Minister's reply he has failed to recognize the ruling of the TSJ-CLM and has maintained that the "only" professionals competent to work in hunting matters are those with "forestry" qualifications, to which he himself belongs and which he favors from his position.

The COB-CLM requests that President García-Page end this discriminatory situation, which has been denounced on several occasions, by making a drastic change to the personnel policy of the Ministry of Sustainable Development. This change should allow biologists to apply for all positions with responsibilities related to biodiversity conservation, hunting and fishing, sustainable forest management, etc., for which we possess the necessary training and competence, and which are currently mostly reserved in the official job descriptions for forestry engineers. We also request strict compliance with the rulings of the High Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha and the Supreme Court regarding the annulled Hunting Regulations of Castilla-La Mancha, and consequently, that we be expressly recognized as competent technicians to carry out professional activities in hunting-related matters.