Nature organisation seeks extended ban on building on green spaces

We Are Nature, a citizens’ collective committed to the conservation of nature reserves in the Brussels region, is fighting in court to extend a ban on construction on green spaces until 2030. 

The non-profit organisation secured the temporary moratorium, which prohibits the development or paving of brownfield sites larger than 0.5 hectares, back in October 2025 due to a lack of an appropriate regional land-use plan in place. 

The Brussels region filed an appeal against that decision and the legal proceedings began on Monday. 

At the first hearing, We Are Nature proposed extending the construction freeze either until the revised versions of the Regional Land-Use Plan and the Spatial Planning Code have been approved, or until at least 30 June 2030.

“The moratorium expires on 31 December. Members of the public are calling for it not to end until the Brussels region has brought its regulatory framework into line with its obligations regarding climate action and nature restoration,” the organisation said.

The Brussels region, for its part, is calling for the initial ruling to be overturned and the construction freeze to be lifted.

We Are Nature, Bruxelles Nature and 1,330 individual residents first brought legal proceedings against the Brussels region in 2024 to ensure that it would “cease the destruction” of undeveloped green spaces in the region. 

“Nature reserves and living soils help to cool the city, absorb water and store carbon. They provide a habitat for biodiversity,” the organisation said. 

“By destroying them today, we are reducing our ability to cope with tomorrow’s extreme weather conditions and worsening the quality of life in our urban region.”

Monday’s hearing was largely devoted to the arguments put forward by the Brussels region, whilst the next hearing on 12 October will be devoted to the arguments of We Are Nature.