Government approves PRO NAT.URBE to restore nature in Portuguese cities

The Government has approved PRO NAT.URBE — Action Program for Nature Resilience and Restoration in Urban Areas —, a national instrument intended to protect urban populations against extreme climate events. The approval is contained in Order No. 11559/2026, signed on September 8, 2026, by the Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion, Manuel Castro Almeida, and the Minister of Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, and published in the Diário da República, 2nd series, no. 183, of September 21, 2026. The order enters into force on the day following its publication.

The program is adopted under paragraph 1 of article 15 and paragraph 1 of article 25 of Decree-Law No. 87-A/2025, of July 25, and operationalizes article 8 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1991, regarding nature restoration, within an urban context. This article obliges Member States to ensure, by December 31, 2030, that there is no net loss of urban green space or urban tree canopy, using 2024 as the reference year, and to subsequently ensure a trajectory of sustained growth. PRO NAT.URBE will be in effect between 2026 and 2035 and is coordinated with the National Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change (ENAAC 2030) and the National Nature Restoration Plan (PNRN), whose terms of preparation were established by Order No. 12734/2024, of October 25.

The preamble justifies the urgency based on the events of 2026: severe storms at the beginning of the year, with flooding, coastal overflows, and falling trees, and a succession of heatwaves in the summer, with impacts on public health, the thermal comfort of cities, and pressure on water resources.

Five axes and 22 typologies of intervention

The program is structured into five territorial axes of intervention:

• Increase the surface area of green space;
• Increase the surface area of tree canopy;
• Reduce the impermeable surface area;
• Increase the supply of resilient public space;
• Promote sustainable urban rehabilitation.

From these axes derive 22 typologies of action, including the creation and expansion of green spaces, the conversion of urban voids and underutilized areas, afforestation and shading plans for public spaces, the restoration and renaturalization of watercourses, the creation of retention and infiltration areas, the removal of invasive alien species, the restoration of hydraulic heritage, and the reduction of light pollution.

Climate shelters and national goals

The order provides for the structuring of climate shelter networks — urban parks and gardens, wooded areas, shaded squares, and public facilities that offer thermal comfort during extreme heat episodes — and aligns with the 3-30-300 rule: three trees visible from home, approximately 30% tree canopy cover in the neighborhood, and a public green space within 300 meters.

There are four national goals:

• MN1 — by 2030, maintain or increase the area of urban green spaces;
• MN2 — by 2030, maintain or increase the area of tree canopy cover;
• MN3 — by 2035, increase the area of urban green spaces;
• MN4 — by 2035, increase the area of tree canopy cover.

The diagnosis identified 380 Urban Ecosystem Areas in the mainland territory, with 198,774 hectares and 91,391 hectares of urban green space; adding the areas excluded by methodological criteria, the total reaches 874 areas and 423,485 hectares.

Governance, financing, and evaluation

The Directorate-General for Territory ensures the tracking and monitoring of the program, in coordination with the Climate Agency, the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests, and the regional coordination and development commissions. Municipalities will be responsible for planning, proposing, and executing interventions in their territories, with the involvement of local communities.

Financing combines community, national, and municipal sources. In a first phase, pilot projects will be co-financed by the Environmental Fund, under the terms of Order No. 6769-A/2026, of May 27, through program-contracts with municipalities in 2026; followed by Portugal 2030 and regional operational programs. An interim evaluation is planned for 2028 and an impact evaluation for 2031.

For municipalities and urban populations, the program creates a reference framework for applying for funding for interventions and for integrating nature restoration objectives into urban planning instruments. The Government presents it as a pioneering initiative in the European Union, specifically dedicated to nature restoration in urban areas.

Source: Diário da República, 2nd series, no. 183, of September 21, 2026, Economy and Territorial Cohesion and Environment and Energy section, pág. 1-39 (official reference: Order No. 11559/2026).