The Luxembourg Nature and Forest Administration is offering a series of training sessions on how to use the new digital compensation tool for nature protection.
The new law of 18 July 2018 concerning the protection of nature and natural resources, which was published on 5 September 2018, makes a number of major changes to the modalities, responsibilities and procedures for the compensation of protected biotopes, natural habitats of community interest and natural habitats for species of community interest, for which the conservation status has been assessed as unfavourable. These reforms serve to make the compensation system simpler, more efficient and more transparent.
Reform of the compensatory system includes the introduction of a digital system for evaluating the value of biotopes and compensation areas in eco-points, the creation of compensatory pools, managed by the Nature and Forest Administration or municipalities, aiming at the achievement of compensatory measures independent of the destruction of biotopes or habitats, the submission by public or private applicants to the compensatory measures of pools on payment of a refund tax, the creation of a register of compensatory measures allowing the registration and the recording of eco-points.
At the base of the compensatory system are ecological balances. The Grand-Ducal Regulation of 1 August 2018 establishing a numerical evaluation and compensation system in eco-points provides that these balance sheets must be compiled using an on-line numerical evaluation and compensation calculation application called "Ecopoints" that will be made available by the Nature and Forest Administration.
The consulting firms likely to carry out ecological assessments under the new law are required to take the following steps to access the application: possess a valid Luxtrust certificate (offices that do not yet have such a certificate are invited to apply to Luxtrust SA); request an IAM-VPN user account from the ANF IT department who then sends forms to complete, sign and return to ecopoints@anf.etat.lu; follow the procedure for registering the Luxtrust certificate in the IAM authentication portal filled in by e-mail.
In order to familiarise those concerned with the use of the Ecopoints application, the Nature and Forest Administration will provide training on Tuesday 20 November 2018 from 09:00-12:00 and Friday 30 November 2018 from 14:00-17:00 at the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Infrastructures (4, place de l'Europe, L-1499 Luxembourg, training room).
Interested parties are invited to register for one of these trainings with Izeta Smajic via email: izeta.smajic@anf.etat.lu or tel: (+352) 40 22 01-614.
The Department of the Environment is in the process of defining a modus operandi for the evaluations that will have to be carried out before the software will be available at the accredited offices. This interim solution will be presented in early November and will be in place for a transitional period of approximately three months.
