EU helps pay for Zoniënwoud to come back together

The European Union is to pay €3.5 million – almost half of the cost – towards the work necessary to bring the Forêt de Soignes back together. The work involves building bridges and tunnels for animal migration. The remainder of the cost will be paid by Flanders region, Wallonia and Brussels in proportion to the area of forest on their territory.

The 4,400 hectare forest s the largest in the country, and straddles the borders of Brussels, Wallonia and Flanders. Flemish Brabant province takes up the most – 56% of the whole – with 38% in Brussels and 6% in Walloon Brabant. Once a single woodland mass, the forest has in recent years been split by road infrastructure, principally the E411 and the Ring.

That has made it difficult or even impossible for animals to benefit from the full habitat that would otherwise be available, so the three regional environment ministers in 2008 issued a statement of intent, which led eventually to the Life + project which would, at a cost of just over €6.7 million, provide overpasses and tunnels for migrating animals to cross safely from one part of the forest to another. Over the next four years, the project will install one or two ecoducts over the Ring and the Chaussée de la Hulpe; four tree-bridges and three ecotunnels.