Grenzeloos Bocageland

Nature grasslands as key to (re)localising agroecosystems

‘Grenzeloos Bocageland’ or ‘Borderless Bocage landscape’ is a newly established, transboundary landscape park, which encompasses the Flemish Voerstreek, The Walloon Pays de Herve, and the Dutch Heuvelland. The park features a characteristic bocage landscape, one of the best-preserved areas in Northwestern Europe, marked by a patchwork of fields enclosed by hedgerows, wooded banks, and small forests. Its hilly terrain and fertile soil create a rich agricultural environment, while fast-flowing streams and deep valleys add to its ecological diversity.

The distinct agrarian cultural landscape is the result of a transition from arable farming to livestock farming in the 16th century. Up until today, agriculture, especially livestock, remains the foundation of the landscape and thus also the park. Culturally, the region has been shaped by a mix of Dutch, French, and German influences, reflected in its architecture, traditions, and dialects. Historical events, including shifting national borders, have reinforced its strong local identity.

Soil and Planning Challenges

The historical agricultural system has been under pressure for decades, threatening landscape management and ecology.
Increased livestock numbers and reliance on external feed have reduced the land-based nature of dairy farming.
High land prices and urbanisation pressure, as in the rest of Flanders, endanger extensive, low-revenue land use.
These changes lead to the loss of traditional landscape elements and increased soil erosion, worsened by extreme rainfall.
EU nature policy promotes restoring natural grasslands, but without the original farming systems, this conflicts with current agricultural practices.

Soil and Planning Opportunities

The newly established landscape park provides a framework for preserving and restoring decisive landscape features and valuable soils. It supports sustainable agriculture and helps farmers adapt to climate goals while strengthening ecological resilience and economic stability.

By promoting sustainable agriculture and supporting farmers, practices become more aligned with climate goals and ecological resilience. At the same time, businesses become more robust and automatically counterbalance external pressures.
The area’s rich agricultural heritage and scenic landscape offer potential for eco-tourism and local product markets, supporting both conservation and the economy.
Inside the park’s boundaries, numerous protected nature areas impact how farmers work today. While these restrictions pose challenges, they also pave the way for more sustainable, soil-inclusive practices and strategies.

Ambition for the SPADES Project

Within the SPADES project, the focus for this pilot is twofold and will move across different scales:

On the one hand, research will be conducted on the practical implementation of the current nature policy and spatial instruments at the farm level. The pilot will focus on agroecological, financially viable dairy farm business models that structurally rely on natural grassland management and could thus be key actors in the preservation of the distinct landscape.
On the other hand, the pilot will return from the farm level to the landscape level, to explore how planning policies and instruments could provide a more enabling environment for the agroecological dairy farm business models to develop and survive. The pilot will provide a better understanding of the spatial characteristics of the regional agroecosystem.

The results will contribute to the further development of the landscape park, in particular to the park's ambition to help farmers cope with new regulations and to support farm transitions, adapting to the changing climate while strengthening ecological resilience and economic stability.

Map of the pilot area.

Map of the pilot region.

Contact: Glenn Willems (glenn [dot] willems [at] ilvo [dot] vlaanderen [dot] be)