Nature Conservation Agency

The Nature Conservation Agency is a public administration attached to the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development.

The Nature Conservation Agency is responsible for the following missions:

• protection of nature, natural resources, biological diversity and landscapes
• protection and management of durable forestry of forests subject to the forestry plan and hunting resources
• promotion of sustainable forestry management in private forests
• raising public awareness in the areas of nature and forests
• monitoring and policing in matters of the protection of nature, forests, hunting and fishing.

Responsibilities

In the context of international trade, the Nature Conservation Agency controls the FLEGT licenses issued by foreign authorities for the transport of sustainable and/or legal timber, in particular the exhaustiveness and the consistency of the information provided, and the compliance of goods (quantity, marking, traceability, etc.).

The Nature Conservation Agency is responsible for approving or denying the FLEGT authorizations that are submitted to it.

More generally, as part of the European Union Timber Regulation, it makes sure that the timber sold in the country does not originate from an illegal forestry operation and ensures compliance with national and European regulations on timber trade.