More heathlands and forests: The EU wants to save nature with this law Man shoots two climate activists during a roadblock in Panama – the background

For nature to recover in the EU, more forests need to be reforested, heathlands re-watered and rivers restored to their natural state. Negotiators from the European Parliament and EU countries agreed on a hotly debated nature conservation project on Friday evening. The background to the law is that, according to EU information, approximately 80 percent of habitats in the European Union are in poor condition. In addition, 10 percent of bee and butterfly species are threatened with extinction and 70 percent of the soil is in an unhealthy condition.

EU states said the number of wild insect pollinators in Europe has declined dramatically in recent decades. To counter this, the regulation requires Member States to take measures to reverse the decline by 2030 at the latest.

The law was preceded by a heated discussion, partly because it was feared that strict requirements would be imposed on farmers. The Christian Democrats in particular were against the project and tried to stop it completely. However, a motion to reject the law did not receive a majority in parliament this summer.

With the compromise that has now been reached, farmers are not obliged to make a certain percentage of their land available for environmentally friendly measures, which farmers were already afraid of. The compromise reached still needs to be formally approved by the EU countries and the European Parliament. Normally this is a formality. In this case, however, it is not entirely certain that enough Christian Democrats from the EPP will agree to the compromise to gain a sufficient majority in Parliament.

“The EPP group will seriously examine today’s results and weigh them carefully before the upcoming decisions in the Environment Committee and in the plenary,” said CDU negotiator Christine Schneider. Nature conservation and climate objectives went hand in hand with agriculture and forestry. The EU agricultural policy funds may not be used for measures under the law. She is pleased that the other groups have moved in the direction of the Christian Democrats on many important points.

Green MP Jutta Paulus, who was involved in the negotiations, spoke of some painful compromises. What is important, however, is the signal that the EU takes international obligations seriously. The Christian Democrats have significantly eased negotiations.

The European Commission welcomed the outcome of the negotiations. By 2030, EU countries must implement measures on at least 20 percent of land and sea areas to restore good status. The environmental organization WWF spoke in a statement about loopholes in the law. Many exceptions and flexibility in the obligations of EU countries are disappointing. (sda/dpa)