Planning for biodiversity: Insights from Swiss municipal land-use plan revisions

Implementing the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) requires integrating biodiversity considerations across sectors and governance levels. Because land-use decisions are made locally, municipal land-use planning plays a pivotal role in shaping green, climate-resilient and ecologically functional settlement areas. In Switzerland, municipalities use building and zoning regulations to determine where development occurs, which blue and green areas are preserved, and which ecological standards apply to the construction sector. Yet little is known about how biodiversity-friendly standards are negotiated, institutionalized, and translated into binding rules during land-use plan revisions. We examined how biodiversity-friendly standards are incorporated into municipal regulations based on a qualitative assessment of six Swiss municipalities. We analysed ecological measures such as the protection of trees, watercourses, and urban green spaces, requirements for compensating lost green areas or trees, and strategies for increasing habitats through measures like plantings, daylighting streams, and promoting connectivity. These measures reflect a three-part urban ecology logic of preserving, compensating for construction, and expanding urban green, operationalized across seven areas of biodiversity promotion in settlement areas: green spaces, ecological quality, trees and hedgerows, water, soil and permeability, light/darkness, and animal-friendly construction.

Using document analysis and semi-structured interviews with planners, local politicians, and stakeholders, the study identified enablers and barriers influencing the uptake of biodiversity-friendly standards. Findings indicate that the latter varies across different stages of the revision process and is driven by expert inputs, local advocacy and public demands for liveable environments. At the same time, development pressures, feasibility concerns, and political opposition often constrain the ambition or consistency of ecological measures.

By situating these insights within the GBF Target 1 on spatial planning, the study shows how land-use plan revisions serve as a crucial arena where protection and use of urban green spaces are negotiated, and locally tailored solutions emerge. The analysis bridges urban ecology and biodiversity governance perspectives by unpacking how ecological principles are considered and contested within political processes. Overall, a trend towards stronger anchoring of biodiversity-friendly regulations can be observed, highlighting the potential of municipal planning as a lever for resilient, multifunctional, and biodiverse urban and peri-urban landscapes.