Effinature, public action
Biodiversity certification at the service of local authorities
Municipalities, inter-municipal bodies, metropolises: Effinature helps you require and showcase biodiversity in the operations across your territory, from public buildings to urban developments, with accredited third-party proof that substantiates your commitments.
Cofrac accreditation
No. 5-0655
ISO/IEC 17065
product certification
Field assessment
carried out by IRICE
Public registry
of certified operations
What certification brings you
Three reasons to certify the operations in your territory
Exemplary public procurement
Embedding a standard into your specifications, works contracts and design competitions sets a clear, measurable and verifiable level of ambition. You ask for results assessed by a third party, not mere intentions.
Nature in the city and climate adaptation
Unsealing soils, greening spaces, infiltrating stormwater, fighting heat islands: Effinature precisely assesses these ecological functions to steer the quality of your projects and adapt your territory to climate change.
Enforceable third-party proof
To objectify your commitments (net zero land take, planning documents, renaturation trajectory), certification provides accredited verification rather than a self-declaration. Enforceable commitments, to the benefit of democratic transparency.
Why a local authority commits to biodiversity
Local authorities are on the front line of the collapse of the living world and of climate change. They run operations that structure their territory: schools, sports facilities, housing, public-building refurbishments, redevelopment of squares and streets, parks and green spaces. Each of these operations can either deepen soil sealing or become a tangible lever for renaturation. By writing biodiversity requirements into its projects, a local authority acts on assets it directly controls and sets an example for every actor in its territory.
Exemplarity and public procurement
Exemplary public procurement is now expected by residents and financial partners alike. By embedding a biodiversity certification standard into its specifications, works contracts and design competitions, the authority sets a clear, measurable and verifiable level of ambition. It no longer simply states intentions: it asks its project owners and their contractors for results assessed by a third party independent of the project owner. This approach safeguards public spending and makes environmental commitments enforceable, to the benefit of democratic transparency.
Biodiversity and nature in the city
Bringing nature back into the city is not only about planting trees: it means rebuilding living soils, restoring ecological continuity, supporting ordinary wildlife and managing water as close as possible to where it falls. Effinature precisely assesses these ecological functions on each operation, based on concrete evidence rather than declarations. The authority thus shares a common language with its developers and social landlords to steer the ecological quality of its projects, neighbourhood by neighbourhood.
Climate adaptation, net zero land take and soil unsealing
The Zero Net Land Take objective and adaptation to climate change are redefining how we build and develop. Unsealing schoolyards, greening public spaces, infiltrating stormwater and fighting heat islands are no longer options but necessities. Effinature makes it possible to substantiate these efforts: the standard assesses land sobriety, soil life, water management and the climate comfort of outdoor spaces. Certification becomes a proof tool to demonstrate, with figures to back it up, a territory's renaturation trajectory.
Embedding it in planning documents
A local authority can go beyond a single project by writing the certification requirement into its planning documents: development and programming guidelines, inter-municipal local plans, development charters or agreements with operators. The Effinature standard offers a stable and recognised framework to express these expectations, avoiding subjective criteria. Certified operations feed the monitoring of public biodiversity policies and support the dialogue with the State, water agencies and regional partners.
The right standard
Which standard for which type of operation
Effinature offers standards tailored to the nature of each operation. For a new build (school, facility, housing, office), the NCO standard assesses ecological performance from design to delivery. For a refurbishment or an operation on existing assets, the EVO standard measures the biodiversity gains achieved. For landscaping and outdoor spaces, the HOR standard is dedicated to horticultural and landscape operations. An HVE-type follow-up finally embeds the approach over time. Your technical teams choose the most relevant standard for each project, and a single territory can combine several standards across its various operations.
NCO 25.05
New construction
New housing, offices or mixed-use: ecological performance assessed from design to delivery.
Learn more →EVO 25.05
Renovation
Renovation or refurbishment: biodiversity gains delivered on the existing building.
Learn more →HOR 25.05
Development
Development and outdoor spaces at neighbourhood or plot scale.
Learn more →HVE 25.05
In use
Biodiversity maintained over time once the project is delivered and occupied (recurring checks).
Learn more →Accredited third-party proof to objectify commitments
Effinature's strength lies in the independence of the assessment. Certification is issued by IRICE, a certification body accredited by Cofrac (No. 5-0655), which carries out the field assessment and then makes the certification decision with full impartiality. A Biodiversity Partner, a professional qualified by IRICE, may support the authority beforehand, but never takes part in the assessment. This accredited framework, described on the IRICE website, guarantees the authority that its commitments do not rest on self-assessment but on enforceable verification. Effinature is part of the wider toolset run by the NORMAXIS group, from a pre-diagnostic through to a signed certification.
The journey
How to start a certification
Create your account
Online sign-up, free, in a few minutes.
Submit your request
Describe the operation and the target standard. IRICE reviews admissibility.
Field assessment
IRICE assesses your operation on site against the standard.
Decision and certificate
IRICE decides independently and issues the certificate, listed in the public registry.
Ready to showcase the biodiversity of your territory?
Create your account and submit your certification request, or explore the standards suited to your operations first.
Training your teams.
A one-day course allows your in-house teams to understand what biodiversity changes in a project, to know what to ask an ecologist for, and to check what they are given.
7 hours · No prerequisite