Public funding given to three Flemish land management associations in Belgium between 2003 and 2017 did not amount to illegal State aid, the European Commission has concluded.
The Commission examined support provided to Natuurpunt Beheer, Durme and Limburgs Landschap for buying land suitable for nature conservation in Flanders, which was then landscaped, transformed into and managed as nature reserves, it announced on Tuesday.
An in-depth investigation was opened in June 2024 after a complaint from the Flemish Association for Equal Rights in relation to Nature Management, which alleged the Flemish Region and Flemish municipalities had granted unlawful State aid to the three associations.
It found the groups’ core work — nature conservation, and information and education activities — was not an “economic activity” under EU rules, meaning funding for those purposes did not fall under state aid rules.
The Commission added that certain secondary activities, such as wood cutting and producing hay or meat, were inseparably linked to managing nature reserves and were therefore also not considered economic.
Limited commercial activity, no impact on trade
Other activities, including cafeteria services or book sales, were carried out only on a limited scale and in local markets, meaning they were not liable to affect trade and did not constitute State aid.
The Commission said all three beneficiaries are not-for-profit organisations.
A non-confidential version of the decision will be published later in the Commission’s State aid register under case number SA.36303, once confidentiality issues have been resolved.
