Land conversion plans: what do they contain, and who is accountable?
Updated
Each local green tripartite partnership has prepared a land conversion plan. The plan shows how the area can meet its share of the nitrogen and lowland soil targets through land conversion.
What does the plan cover?
According to SGAV (the Danish Agency for Green Transition and Aquatic Environment), land conversion efforts include taking carbon-rich lowland soils out of production, wetlands, afforestation, extensification and other area-based measures, including better conditions for nature and biodiversity.
Link to nitrogen
The plans must show how nitrogen reduction requirements can be met through land conversion, thereby reducing the need for field-level regulation. The impact is calculated in MARS (Denmark's land conversion planning system) across 37 hydrological coastal water groups.
Who is responsible?
By the end of 2025, municipal councils had approved in principle the parts of the plans registered in MARS as falling within their own municipal boundaries. As municipalities are the authorities responsible for land use, they are ultimately responsible for their part of the plan.
From plan to project
A plan consists of a series of potential projects. Each project must then be investigated, secure landowner support, apply for funding and be implemented. Documenting the site's baseline conditions early is an advantage here, so that later stages build on the same foundation.
Frequently asked questions
How many projects do the land conversion plans contain?
KL's (Local Government Denmark's) status report from May 2026 states that the 23 plans contain more than 5,600 potential projects.