Legislation on assistance to improve the protection and sustainable management of forest ecosystems provides for aid to reinforce the forest ecosystem through the nurturing of young forest stands.

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

Who is concerned

Anyone wishing to apply for aid for reinforcing the forest ecosystem through the nurturing of young forest stands.

Prerequisites

The applicant must verify that the forest land in question:

• is in a listed green zone: this requirement precludes areas in which:
  • pesticides are used; or
  • groundwork is carried out which degrades the soil structure (tilling and stump removal);
• is at least 40 ares;
• forms a single, contiguous forest stand. The stand must have the following features:
  • more than 50 % of the stand must be hardwood species, unless there are softwood species derived from natural regeneration.
  • the average height of the stems must be:
    • between 5 and 10 metres; or
    • greater than 3 metres for stands of oak.

Deadlines

Applications must be lodged before any work begins.

How to proceed

Filing an application

The application must be filed with the relevant head of the district, and the application form must include the following information:

• the applicant's 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, land registry plot number, cadastral surface, surface area affected, and height of the forest stand).

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 work site;
• a cadastral extract of the plots concerned;
• a certificate attesting to force majeure circumstances in case of a windthrow event or bark beetle infestation

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 amount of aid is set at EUR 10 per are of land.

The amount of aid may be doubled for work to nurture young forest stands following a windthrow event or bark beetle infestation. The applicant must obtain a certificate from the administration attesting to the damage caused by the windthrow event or bark beetle infestation, and that the damage was due to force majeure circumstances. Such a certificate can be obtained from the competent district authorities. In addition, the minister must declare the circumstances a natural disaster.

Requirements

The beneficiary must:

• set up a system of self-contained growing areas (clusters);
• take action to maintain the apical dominance of future trees intended to produce high-quality wood;
• maintain the diversity of the trees.

Repayment of aid

The beneficiary will be required to repay the aid received if:

• it was obtained by means of false or incomplete statements;
• they have failed to comply with the conditions to which the granting of the aid was subject. In that event, the beneficiary will also be required to pay interest at the legal rate, calculated as from the day of payment to the day of repayment.

For the year in question, the beneficiary will also be precluded from receiving any aid for improving the protection and sustainable management of forest ecosystems in the event of:

• a false declaration due to gross negligence; or
• failure to abide by the principles of best forestry practices.

Appeal

If their application is denied, or if they are required to repay any aid received, the applicant may appeal the administrative decision by the usual means of appeal (non-contentious appeal, legal appeal), provided they observe the legal limitation periods.

It is also possible to lodge an appeal with the Ombudsman.

Forms / Online services

Who to contact