Aid for freely evolving forests

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Demande d'aide en vue du maintien et de l'amélioration des services écosystémiques rendus par la forêt - Forêt en libre évolution (French, Pdf, 369 Kb)

Legislation on financial aid to maintain and improve the ecosystemic benefits provided by forests includes an aid scheme whose purpose is to conserve natural and semi-natural forests representatives of Luxembourg forests in a natural and freely evolving state.

Applicants must submit their application to the district authority with jurisdiction, which will notify them of the decision of the Nature and Forest Agency (Administration de la nature et des forêts).

The forest land for which this kind of aid is received is no longer eligible for other kinds of aid.

Who is concerned

Any owner of forest land.

Where land is jointly owned by multiple natural or legal persons, the aid will be granted only once per plot.

Prerequisites

Those who own more than 20 hectares of forest must provide the government administration department with a valid document relating to planned forestry activities:

  • which applies to all their forest holdings; and
  • has been approved by the government administration.

This aid measure is restricted to forests in Luxembourg with a total surface area of 2,500 hectares.

To receive the aid, the applicant must confirm that the eligible forests:

  • are forests that have been listed as a protected area of national interest by Grand-Ducal regulation;
  • are forests selected as part of a Natura 2000 management plan;
  • are in a listed green zone. This requirement precludes lands where:
    • pesticides are used; or
    • lands on which:
      • groundworks that harm the soil structure are carried out; or
      • drainage works or fertilisation are carried out;
  • are natural or semi-natural hardwood forests where:
    • at least 75 % of their surface area is populated by mature forest stands or coppices converted by natural ageing or by forestry measures. Such forest lands are characterised by a typical range of species in the following biological associations:
      • Luzulo-Fagetum beech forests – 9110;
      • Asperulo-Fagetum beech forests – 9130;
      • Medio-European limestone beech forests – 9150;
      • pedunculate oak or oak-hornbeam forests – 9160;
      • sloping, scree or ravine forests – 9180;
      • bog woodland – 91D0;
      • alluvial forest – 91E0;
      • hardwood forest stands – BK13;
      • mixed oak forests – BK23;
    • the remaining 25 % may be made up of recent clear-felling, young stands of indigenous, naturally rooted hardwoods aged 20 years at most, or stands of softwoods;
  • the forest is a single contiguous wooded area, measuring at least 50 hectares, comprising one or more stands of trees and belonging to one or more owners. Exemptions from these surface requirements may be granted by the Minister for forests with rare phytosociological associations such as:
    • alluvial forests – 91E0;
    • sloping, scree or ravine forests – 9180;
    • bog woodland – 91D0;
    • pedunculate oak or oak–hornbeam forests – 9160;
    • Medio-European limestone beech forests – 9150.

The Minister must give prior authorisation for the forests in question to be included in the national network of natural and semi-natural, freely evolving forests; this authorisation is based on ecological criteria, spatial distribution and representativeness of the types of natural and semi-natural forests.

Deadlines

The applicant must submit the application to the head of the district concerned after the area has been declared a protected zone.

How to proceed

Filing an application

When filing the application with the head of the district concerned (French, Excel, 9 Kb), applicants must state the following on the form (available under 'Forms / Online services' below):

  • their surname and first name;
  • their address;
  • their telephone number;
  • their banking institution and account number;
  • their national identification number;
  • the total area of the forest property;
  • information about the area in question: commune, section, locality, cadastral number, cadastral surface, and the surface area affected by the project.

If the applicant owns a farm, they must also specify:

  • the farm holding number;
  • the farm accident insurance number.

Supporting documents

The application must be accompanied by the following:

  • a topographic map (scale 1:10,000) showing the location of the site;
  • an extract of a cadastral map (scale 1:2,500) for the plots in question;
  • a copy of the management agreement entered into with the Minister.

Decision

The head of the district will inform the applicant of the Nature and Forest Agency's decision, and the measures to be taken to receive a subsidy.

Amount of aid

The aid is paid out in 6 instalments at five-yearly intervals. The amount of each instalment depends on:

  • the dominant species in the various stands making up the forest to be allowed to freely evolve;
  • the age brackets of the different forest stands making up the forest in question.

The amount of aid is calculated using the aid per hectare (French, Word, 222 Kb), multiplied by the individual surface areas of the different stands, weighted by the age brackets of the stands making up the forest, which is to be allowed to evolve freely.

The aid is paid at the end of each five-year period to which they pertain; the first payment is made on the signing of the agreement.

Requirements

The forest land for which this kind of aid is received is no longer eligible for other kinds of aid. The property owner makes a commitment for a period of at least 30 years.

The beneficiary is required to:

  • sign a management agreement with the Minister, setting out the specific management conditions for achieving the desired protection goals, and the corresponding amount of aid;
  • allow the ecosystem to evolve freely;
  • refrain from any forestry activities with the exception of those necessary to ensure public safety and those authorised by the Minister in the interest of the conservation and management of the freely evolving forest. Any fallen trees must be left in the forest and, if possible, exactly where they fall, with the exception of softwood stands which are to be converted into natural forest over a transition period. These types of forestry activities shall be identified by Grand Ducal regulation or in the Natura 2000 management plan;
  • refrain from developing any new infrastructure, although they are allowed to clear and maintain existing tracks and trails.

Repayment of aid

Any aid paid out must be repaid to the State Treasury when:

  • it was obtained by means of knowingly false or incomplete representations on the part of the beneficiary;
  • the beneficiary has failed to comply with the conditions to which the granting of the aid was subject. In that event, the beneficiary must also pay interest on the amount given, at the legal base rate, calculated as from the day of payment to the day of repayment.

If a false declaration is found to have been made through gross negligence or through failure to adhere to the principles of good forestry practices, the beneficiary is precluded from receiving aid for the year in question.

If they make a deliberate misrepresentation, they are excluded for the following year as well.

Online services and forms

Downloadable forms

Note: view tips for using PDF forms.

Demande d'aide en vue du maintien et de l'amélioration des services écosystémiques rendus par la forêt - Forêt en libre évolution

Last update 18.10.2023

PDF369 Kb

Other language(s)

Who to contact

Nature and Forest Agency

2 of 7 bodies shown

Related procedures and links

Procedures

Forestry

Links

Further information

Les aides aux mesures forestières

sur emwelt.lu - le portail de l'environnement

Legal references

Règlement grand-ducal du 3 mars 2022

instituant un ensemble de régimes d’aides pour l’amélioration de la protection et de la gestion durable des écosystèmes forestiers

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