City of Bocholt promotes insect-friendly gardens and building greening

The city of Bocholt supports citizens and local companies in the natural design of their areas. Targeted financial incentives are intended to create new habitats for insects and sustainably improve the urban microclimate. Interested parties can apply for grants for various greening measures.

The ongoing extinction of insects poses a serious threat to the ecological balance, as the loss of these animal species has far-reaching consequences for entire ecosystems and the human food base.

In order to counteract this development at a local level, the city of Bocholt has launched support programmes to motivate private households and businesses to create insect-friendly landscaping. Anyone who establishes native plants on their property makes an important contribution to preserving biodiversity.

The city will cover 50 per cent of the costs for seeds, perennials, shrubs and trees. For private individuals, the funding limit is 1,000 euros, while companies can receive up to 10,000 euros for more extensive measures on their company premises.

Another focus of the funding is on the unsealing of surfaces. The city of Bocholt offers incentives to dismantle existing gravel gardens or sealed areas and convert them into near-natural zones. Unsealed areas allow rainwater to seep away, relieving the burden on the sewage system. Not only the new plantings are eligible for funding, but also the costs for the removal and professional disposal of gravel, grit or concrete. The delivery and placement of topsoil is also financially supported to ensure a successful redesign.

"Every square metre that is unsealed and planted in a near-natural way is a benefit for our native insect world and improves the quality of life in our city", says Bocholt's city planning officer Dave Welling.

In addition to landscaping, the city is also focussing on the greening of buildings, which is an effective solution, especially where space is limited. Green roofs in private residential buildings are subsidised with up to 5,000 euros, while a maximum of 500 euros per building is available for the greening of façades.

Participation in "paving"

In addition to the permanent funding programmes, the city of Bocholt encourages all citizens to take part in the nationwide "abpflastern" competition. In this campaign, various cities and municipalities compete against each other in a friendly competition to unseal as many square metres of paved surfaces as possible within the period from 21 March to 31 October.

The aim is to transform grey concrete and asphalt deserts into living green spaces and thus make a measurable contribution to local nature conservation. The new season of the city competition officially starts on 21 March 2026. Residents, municipal institutions and local organisations are called upon to get active together and take up the challenge.

Every square metre that is greened as part of this campaign counts towards the nationwide ranking. Entries can be sent to abpflastern(at)bocholt(dot)de with the number of square metres unsealed and a before and after photo. The city of Bocholt will raffle off plant vouchers worth a total of 1000 euros among all entries.

"This collective effort not only strengthens the sense of community within the neighbourhoods, but also ensures a measurable enhancement of the residential area for future generations", according to the campaign's website.

Detailed information on the funding conditions is available from the city council at www.bocholt.de/foerderprogramme. All information on the "Apflaster" competition can be found at www.bocholt.de/abpflastern or on the campaign website at www.abpflastern.de