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In a ‘landmark’ moment for European biodiversity action, the European Parliament has passed a law to restore and protect 20pc of habitats and species by 2030.
At a session of the European Parliament today (27 February), MEPs voted to adopt the Nature Restoration Law, which aims to restore at least 20pc of the EU’s land and sea areas by 2030.
In casting ballots on this fiercely debated law, 329 MEPs voted in favour, 275 voted against and there were 24 abstentions. The law has to be adopted by the European Council and published in the EU Official Journal before it can enter into force 20 days later.
EU commissioner for the environment, ocean and fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius said in a post on X that he was “thankful to all those who defended the Nature Restoration Law today!”.
He said the law is crucial “to keep our soils and lands productive and safeguard our farmers’ future [and] to tackle biodiversity crisis and meet our climate targets”.
Why do we need a nature restoration law?
The interlinked climate and biodiversity crises are apparent across the EU. The latest data from Copernicus, the EU’s Climate Change Service, show that Europe is heating up faster than any other continent. January 2024 was the eighth successive month to be the hottest on record, with the last 12 months seeing global average temperatures reach 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
Alongside this, biodiversity is also in crisis. A report by the European Environment Agency in 2020 found that 80pc of European habitats are in poor shape. One in three bee and butterfly species are in decline, and over the past decade 71pc of fish and 60pc of amphibian populations have suffered a decline. Up to 70pc of soils were found to be in an unhealthy condition.
“Despite significant efforts by member states and some improvements, biodiversity in the EU continues to decline and faces deteriorating trends from changes in land and sea use, overexploitation and unsustainable management practices, as well as water regime modification, pollution, invasive alien species and climate change,” the report stated.
The report showed that progress was insufficient to meet the objectives of the EU biodiversity strategy for 2020. The report recommended improvements in monitoring capabilities and appropriate financial and human resources to ensure that 2030 targets are met.
What does the law include?
In 2020, the EU published a biodiversity strategy for 2030, with the stated objective of putting Europe’s biodiversity on a path to recovery by the end of the decade “for the benefit of people, climate and the planet”.
A major element of the strategy is the Nature Restoration Law, first proposed by the European Commission in June 2022, which would set binding targets for the long-term recovery of Europe’s land and sea habitats and species.
The proposed law has received criticism from some politicians and from lobby groups representing the farming, forestry and fishing sectors. This was due in part to specific targets for rewetting peatland areas and a belief that agriculture and fishing industries would be stifled.
Last November, negotiations between the European Council and Parliament were concluded and a provisional agreement was reached. In response to the criticisms, the revised proposal includes weaker targets.
“This agreement has come at a high cost,” said Fintan Kelly, advocacy officer for the Environmental Pillar, a group of 32 Irish NGOs, at the time. “With the level of ambition of the law having been hollowed out with lower targets, derogations and loopholes. The law, if adopted by the European Parliament, will be a step in the right direction but it’s clear that countries like Ireland will need to go beyond the ambition of the law if we are going to restore nature and halt climate breakdown.”
The adoption of the law today means that member states must restore 30pc of habitats, including forests, grasslands, wetlands, rivers, lakes and coral beds, from a poor condition to a good condition by 2030. This target increased to 60pc by 2040 and 90pc by 2050. Part of the agreement is that areas are not allowed to deteriorate once they reach a good condition. Member states must adopt national targets to achieve these restoration goals.
“It is appropriate to set an overarching objective for ecosystem restoration to foster economic and societal transformation, the creation of high-quality jobs and sustainable growth,” the law states.
“Biodiverse ecosystems such as wetland, freshwater, forest, as well as agricultural, sparsely vegetated, marine, coastal and urban ecosystems deliver, if in good condition, a range of essential ecosystem services, and the benefits of restoring degraded ecosystems to good condition in all land and sea areas far outweigh the costs of restoration. Those services contribute to a broad range of socio-economic benefits.”
In terms of agricultural ecosystems, EU countries must make progress in two of three indicators: the grassland butterfly index; the share of agricultural land with high-diversity landscape features; and the stock or organic carbon in cropland mineral soil. Countries must also take action to increase the common farmland bird index.
EU countries must restore 30pc of drained peatlands by 2030, with a quarter of this rewetted. However, rewetting is to be voluntary for farmers and private landowners, with state-owned land providing the bulk of rewetted areas.
This law is vital for the restoration of nature, the fight against climate change, ensuring sustainable jobs and protecting food security #RestoreNature
All Irish MEPs aside from Luke Ming Flanagan and Chris MacManus voted to accept the law. PR belowhttps://t.co/7gUbQt4bwk pic.twitter.com/X2rXiPwYm9
— Irish Wildlife Trust (@Irishwildlife) February 27, 2024
In a significant win for the law’s critics, it provides for an “emergency brake” from agricultural targets under exceptional circumstances, such as if they severely reduce the land needed for food production for EU consumption.
The law targets an additional 3bn trees to be planted by 2030 and member states will have to restore thousands of kilometres of free-flowing rivers and ensure there is no net loss in urban green space and urban tree canopy cover.
Tempered response
Green party MEP Grace O’Sullivan said that the passing of the Nature Restoration Law gives us “a fighting chance to reverse hundreds of years of degradation and damage that have been inflicted on our ecosystems”.
She said that while it is not perfect, she welcomes the “landmark decision”.
“[Ireland] is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. What’s good for nature is good for climate and biodiversity, for farming and food production, for health and wellbeing, for water quality and flood protection, for tourism and recreation – there are huge benefits.”
The Irish Wildlife Trust described the law as “a substantial step forward” for protecting degraded ecosystems.
“While the law has been weakened since the Commission’s original proposal back in 2022, it still sets in stone timelines and targets for bringing back nature on land and sea.
“This law is an opportunity to empower communities to lead in nature restoration and for all stakeholders to work together to identify ways in which to save nature and create schemes which can help incentivise farmers and landowners to voluntarily take part.”
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