Town hall recently surrounded by greenery: “Four workers have taken a course for this” (Tremelo)

The municipality of Tremelo, with the support of the province of Flemish Brabant and KiemKracht, has replaced tiles in the area around the town hall with greenery. A total of 2231 tiles were removed. “We want to set a good example.”

Flanders is one of the most paved areas in Europe. And that has its consequences, says the Tremelose councilor, Kris Torfs (Green). “By replacing pavements with grass, flowers, shrubs and facade gardens, we make our municipality more climate-proof, more attractive to animals and useful insects, cooler on hot days and also much more beautiful. As a municipal council, we would like to set a good example and show how residents can make a difference with small interventions in their own garden. “

It was therefore decided to break out a strip of stones around the town hall and plant it. The municipality could count on this on the expertise of the social employment place Kiemkracht, the former Pro Natura, which drew up the design and guided the municipal services in its implementation. “Four workers were able to follow a course for this,” says Torfs. “The best way to soften the surface and what the possibilities are of greening were discussed. This way we can carry out other smaller softening projects ourselves in the future.” The budget for the entire project was estimated at 20,000 euros. “We were able to stay under it.”

Climate-proof

Financial support also came from Flemish Brabant. The province currently supports ten municipalities, including Tremelo, in projects on climate-proof design and management of the public domain. The other nine municipalities are Grimbergen, Liedekerke, Machelen, Overijse, Roosdaal, Ternat, Tielt-Winge, Tienen and Zoutleeuw.

“Our support consists of guiding the municipality of Tremelo in the implementation of their concrete actions on the ground,” says Bart Nevens (N-VA), deputy for the Environment. “After all, we want to be a climate-neutral and climate-proof province by 2040. That is why we help municipalities draw up their climate plan and support projects that help achieve the objectives of the provincial and municipal climate plans.”