Eco-points and compensation areas
District of Saalekreis
Eco-points and compensation areas in Saalekreis, assessed under the Ökokonto-Verordnung of the state of Saxony-Anhalt (ÖkoKVO LSA) and the Saxony-Anhalt assessment model. greeNature develops and manages compensation measures between the Saale floodplain, the porphyry hills landscape and the Querfurter Platte, operating nationwide with experience of the authorities.
The District of Saalekreis at a glance
Saalekreis lies in the south of Saxony-Anhalt and almost completely surrounds the independent city of Halle (Saale). The district seat and administrative centre is the cathedral city of Merseburg on the Saale. Saxony-Anhalt is not divided into administrative regions (Regierungsbezirke), so the district is directly subordinate to the state authorities.
In terms of natural regions, three landscapes meet within the district: the fertile Querfurter Platte as part of the Thuringian Basin and its marginal plateaus (D18), the distinctive porphyry hills northwest of Halle in the Saxon hill country and Erzgebirge foreland (D19), and the transition to the Östliches Harzvorland and the Börde regions (D20). The district is crossed by the Saale valley.
Ecologically defining are the floodplains of the Saale, Weiße Elster and Luppe with their hardwood riparian forests and wet meadows, the largely tree-free porphyry hills landscape with its dry and rocky grassland, and the Geiseltal post-mining landscape around the Geiseltalsee, where new habitats have emerged from the former lignite open-cast mine.
Economically, the south of the district is shaped by the chemical industry in Leuna and Schkopau, structural change in the Geiseltal, and transport, logistics and energy projects. Plant expansions, infrastructure, ground-mounted photovoltaics and the subsequent use of post-mining land regularly trigger compensation and replacement obligations under §§ 13 to 15 BNatSchG.
🗺️ Associated natural regions
Go to natural region D20 ›
Go to natural region D18 ›
Go to natural region D19 ›
📍 Selected municipalities
🌿 Ecological features
- FFH site Porphyrkuppenlandschaft northwest of Halle (around 822 hectares) with dry, rocky and sandy dry grassland on acidic porphyry
- EU special protection area Saale-Elster-Aue south of Halle with riparian forest, oxbows and wet grassland
- Nature reserve Bergbaufolgelandschaft Geiseltal with spoil heaps and structurally rich shores at the Geiseltalsee, Germany's largest artificial lake
- Querfurter Platte as an extensive chernozem arable landscape of importance for farmland birds such as the skylark
- Around 23 designated nature reserves within the district (as of 2017)
- The Saale, Weiße Elster, Luppe, Geisel and Salza watercourses with accompanying floodplains
- Porphyry hills around Petersberg and Wettin-Löbejün as distinctive hard-rock outcrops rising above the loess
✅ greeNature on the ground
greeNature operates nationwide and is familiar with the compensation law of Saxony-Anhalt. In Saalekreis, we work under the Ökokonto-Verordnung of the state of Saxony-Anhalt (ÖkoKVO LSA) and the Saxony-Anhalt assessment model. We coordinate measures with the lower nature conservation authority of the district (environmental office in Merseburg) and know the particularities of the natural regions between the Saale floodplain, the porphyry hills landscape and the Querfurter Platte.
Typical measures in the district of Saalekreis
Floodplains and watercourses
Development of hardwood riparian forests, old river branches and bank buffer strips on the Saale, Weiße Elster and Luppe, supplemented by steep banks as breeding habitat for the kingfisher.
Dry and rocky grassland on porphyry
Scrub clearance, sheep and goat grazing, and management mowing on the porphyry hills northwest of Halle, to preserve the heat-loving calcareous grassland and its species.
Geiseltal post-mining landscape
Development of raw-soil sites, small water bodies and successional areas on spoil heaps and along the shores of the Geiseltalsee, coordinated with the restoration objectives.
Arable extensification and farmland bird protection
Skylark plots, perennial flowering strips, field margin strips and field boundaries in the chernozem landscape of the Querfurter Platte.
Traditional orchards and hedgerows
Creation and management of traditional orchards, field copses and hedgerows for habitat networking in the cleared agricultural landscape.
Species protection: CEF and FCS
Advance compensation measures (CEF) and measures to maintain a favourable conservation status (FCS), such as sand lizard habitats, bat roosts and amphibian waters under § 44 BNatSchG.
Protected species in the Saale floodplain, porphyry hills and Querfurter Platte
Skylark
The open chernozem fields of the Querfurter Platte are habitat for the skylark and other farmland birds. Skylark plots, flowering strips and extensively managed margin structures are among the typical measures.
About this species ›Sand lizard
The sun-exposed porphyry hills, dry grassland, railway embankments and post-mining land are core habitat for the sand lizard. In infrastructure and settlement projects, it is one of the most common target species for advance compensation measures.
About this species ›Great crested newt
The great crested newt (Annex II and IV of the FFH Directive) inhabits fish-free, well sun-exposed small water bodies in the floodplain. Spawning waters with suitable land habitat nearby are specifically developed for it.
About this species ›Fire-bellied toad and amphibians
The still waters and damp hollows of the Saale-Elster-Aue provide habitat for the fire-bellied toad, tree frog and other amphibians. The creation and networking of sun-exposed small water bodies are common measures.
About this species ›Kingfisher
The kingfisher lives along the Saale, Weiße Elster and Luppe. Near-natural banks, passable watercourses and erosion edges as nesting walls support the population.
About this species ›Bats
Riparian forests, old tree stands and post-mining land serve bat species such as the greater mouse-eared bat as hunting and roosting habitat. Roost protection, tree-cavity protection and woody-vegetation structures are common CEF measures.
About this species ›Which projects trigger a compensation obligation?
Chemicals and industry
The chemical sites Leuna and Schkopau (Buna), with their plant expansions, new facilities and logistics land, regularly generate a need for compensation under §§ 13 to 15 BNatSchG.
Post-mining redevelopment and structural change
Remediation, subsequent use and tourism development in the Geiseltal affect the natural balance and landscape character and trigger compensation and replacement measures.
Transport and infrastructure
Motorways and federal roads within the district, including the Halle western bypass (A 143) through the Saale-Elster-Aue, as well as railway and town bypass projects, lead to impacts for which compensation must be provided under state law.
Renewable energy
Ground-mounted photovoltaic installations on conversion and post-mining land, as well as wind energy projects, require compensation under nature conservation law and, depending on the species affected, CEF and FCS measures.
From enquiry to monitoring
Contact and enquiry
Tell us your compensation requirement and the natural region. We check availability.
Offer and advice
A transparent offer covering measure types, scope and availability.
Coordination with authorities
Full coordination with the lower nature conservation authority. We handle everything.
Long-term monitoring
Permanent securing of the land, management and documentation across the contract term.
Eco-points in adjoining districts
All about eco-points
in the district of Saalekreis
Request eco-points in the district of Saalekreis
We will promptly prepare a transparent offer with matching eco-points held in stock in the district of Saalekreis.