The legislation would force developers to buy credits as part of an eco-points system, revenues from which would be used to offset damage to the wetlands eco-system and forests, for example, through a compensation measure.

According to a statement on the parliament website, the “State will centralise the land intended for these compensatory measures by creating “pools” of land. In practice, the developer of a construction project should then buy “credits” before the work can begin.”

The draft reform comes after a period of intensive development in Luxembourg's green zones resulting in, among other things, the loss of 80% of its wetlands over the past 40 years, according to the parliament statement.

The draft reform provides a series of measures to further protect species in their habitats and sets out penalties, both criminal sanctions and fines, for when these measures are breached.

It also provides for the establishment of a steering committee to manage Natura 2000 protection zones, which should involve more actors in the field. At the time of publishing, Luxembourg had 66 Natura 2000 zones.