The nature conservation compensation can be carried out according to § 1a para. 3 sentence 4 of the Building Code (BauGB) not only through provisions in the development plan but also through urban development contracts or other suitable measures. Christopher Noll analyzes the possibilities of contractual design for such a safeguard by first determining the safeguarding effect of the "standard case" - a compensation through provisions. Using this benchmark, the author develops criteria for the requirements to be placed on a contractual safeguard and subsequently subjects the relevant safeguarding instruments to a critical examination.