Living in a compact but cozy house on the edge of a new nature reserve. The construction of this new nature is partly financed with the rent of your house or plot. Isn’t that the best destination for your housing costs? The farmer or landowner will have a different revenue model, in favor of biodiversity and soil recovery. The bond between farmers and citizens is restored. New nature and tiny houses have an extremely broad social and ecological value.
The test lab new nature and small living (nnkw) has been working since 2018 to explore the functional combination of small living and the construction of new nature. Together with provinces, municipalities and initiators, they investigate what is needed to give projects space and share their findings with interested parties. The test lab has recently developed two step-by-step plans, one for initiators and one for municipalities, which you can now download.
“Combining small-scale habitation with creating new nature results in a more robust landscape with opportunities for nature-inclusive agriculture.”
Step-by-step plan for initiators
The step-by-step plan helps initiators gain insight into which steps they need to go through and in what order. Well-known names such as Sonja van Uden of Landdrift and Pierre Bos of Peel Natuurdorpen have contributed to the step-by-step plan. Who are those initiators? This could be a landowner or a group of future residents who have united in an initiative group or CPO.
“A frequently heard response from municipalities after presentation of plans is: “Interesting plan. Please work this out further.” That’s nice to hear, but not really of any use to you. It is important to ask questions carefully and to obtain more information about the opportunities for realizing your plan.”
The step-by-step plan assumes that a location has already been identified: either owned by the initiator(s), or that rental or lease agreements have been made with the owner of the land. The fifteen-page document is packed with tips and tricks, guidelines and points of interest and is well worth reading. For example: who are the stakeholders in your project, and how do you inform them and get them involved in your plans? This includes local residents, the province and the water board. But also: what is a request in principle and what should you include in it?
Download the step-by-step plan for initiators here, in Dutch only:
Step-by-step plan for municipalities
Municipalities that find the functional combination of small living and new nature interesting and want to investigate will find answers to their questions in the step-by-step plan for municipalities. Using a ‘optional menu’, the municipal official, alderman or councilor can easily indicate which approach suits the municipality best. A clear step-by-step plan has been developed for various scenarios, indicating the order in which the steps can best be taken.
“The new Environmental Act (Omgevingswet) is more focused on facilitating forms of functional combination. One of the central principles of the new Environmental Act is: ‘Multiple use takes precedence over single use’. Another central principle is: ‘The quality of the area is the starting point’.”
The step-by-step plan distinguishes between a framework-setting attitude, a proactive or reactive attitude. Would the municipality itself want to work on a functional combination of new nature and small living, in order to create as much social value as possible? These can be values in the field of nature, biodiversity, strengthening agriculture, housing or recreation. Or is there a question from one or more initiative groups? Clarity is needed in all cases, for both the municipality and initiators. Frameworks must be set and decisions made, with the step-by-step plan providing a helping hand.
Download the step-by-step plan for municipalities here, in Dutch only:
Photo: BlueMonque
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