A previously granted environmental permit cannot be used for a subsequent expansion

On June 24, 2026, the Administrative Law Division of the Council of State issued an important ruling regarding the use of a previously granted environmental permit for a subsequent illegal expansion.

The facts of this case were as follows. In 2022, the Municipal Executive of De Ronde Venen granted the plaintiff an environmental permit for the construction of a barn to be used as a horse boarding facility. The barn was permitted to be 16 meters long. However, during an inspection in 2024, it was found that the barn was not 16 meters long, but 20 meters. Thus, the construction did not comply with the environmental permit that had been granted. The plaintiff submitted a new permit application to legalize the longer barn, but the municipal executive refused to grant the environmental permit.

The claimant’s objection and, later, his appeal to the district court were declared unfounded. Subsequently, the Division had to assess whether the municipal executive had rightly refused the environmental permit for the expansion.

The plaintiff argued that the municipal council had explicitly approved the use of the property as a horse boarding facility in 2022. The expansion of the barn from 16 to 20 meters would merely be a continuation of that already permitted use and would therefore be permitted under the 2022 environmental permit.

The Division disagreed. It ruled that the 2022 environmental permit applied only to the construction plan submitted at that time: a 16-meter barn to be used as a horse boarding facility. The environmental permit allowed for a deviation from the zoning plan but did not amend the zoning plan itself. Consequently, it did not create any possibility to carry out future expansions - in violation of the zoning plan - on the basis of that permit. After all, in 2022, that was not part of the plan for which the permit had been granted.

With this ruling, the Division has confirmed that the established case law under the Wabo on this matter also applies under the Environment Act. Thus, under the Environment Act as well, an environmental permit for an activity outside the zoning plan (BOPA) only grants permission to carry out the requested activity and therefore does not allow for future (illegal) expansions.

Do you have questions about expanding a structure or changing the use of your property, and what permits are required for that? Please contact Gerard van der Wende or me.

You can read the ruling here.