Regulating private gardens under planning law: Challenges and opportunities encountered in the Low Countries

Abstract

This article examines how planning law in Flanders (Belgium) and the Netherlands regulates residential gardens as nature‐based solutions, identifying both legal opportunities for and obstacles to activating the ecosystem services of gardens. The comparison and analysis focus on normative conditions, planning permission as a regulatory permission and enforcement. The EU's Nature Restoration Regulation makes this comparison a timely exercise, as it contains specific obligations for urban nature, which will likely lead to an increased focus by planning authorities on private gardens.