Introduction

In Saint-Brévin-les-Pins, the municipal council's decision of November 14, 2025, sets a precedent. For the first time, a French municipality is using an Environmental Real Obligation (ORE) to compel a developer to replant the trees it has cut down. This mechanism, stemming from the 2016 Biodiversity Law, transforms ecological protection into a legally binding commitment, permanently attached to the land.

1. A still rare legal innovation

The Environmental Obligation (ORE), provided for in Article L.132-3 of the French Environmental Code, allows a landowner to voluntarily encumber their property with an obligation to protect, manage, or restore natural elements. Until now, its use has remained marginal, limited to public land or agreements with NGOs. The initiative in Saint-Brévin-les-Pins represents a significant shift: the municipality imposed this ORE on a private developer as compensation for tree felling carried out during the La Pinède project.

2. A legally binding and lasting commitment

The notarial deed now binds the developer and his successors for a period of thirty years. It stipulates:

• compensatory replanting off-site, on a municipal plot;
• multi-year ecological monitoring financed by the project owner;
• municipal control, integrated into the local urban plan (PLU). This combination of land law and ecological management creates a new form of shared responsibility: biodiversity becomes legally transferable.

3. Towards an ecology of land

The 2025 report from the General Inspectorate for the Environment and Sustainable Development (IGEDD) praises this case as a "pioneering example." The organization recommends generalizing the use of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) and integrating them with urban planning tools: green and blue corridors, environmental easements, and the N and A zones of the Local Urban Development Plan (PLU). EIAs could become a cornerstone of local ecological compensation policies, complementing environmental certification standards.

4. Link with biodiversity certification

For public and private stakeholders, the value of the Environmental Reference Ordinance (ORE) lies in its ability to give lasting legal standing to environmental commitments. IRICE's methodological approach, through Effinature® certifications and the Biodiversity Performance Score (BPS), can be integrated with these mechanisms:

• the ORE sets the land constraint;
• the certification assesses its ecological performance;
• The whole system offers a traceable and verifiable framework for landlords, developers and local authorities.

Conclusion

The Saint-Brévin-les-Pins case demonstrates that it is possible to move from compensatory urban planning to a legally regulated approach to land ecology. The widespread adoption of Environmental Reference Ordinances (OREs) would provide territories with a concrete tool for ecological continuity and shared responsibility. At IRICE, this development confirms a core belief: the sustainability of projects depends on evidence, time, and the law.

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