New Plans
The European Union (EU) on June 17 approved its ambitious Nature Restoration Plan which aims to make continent-wide efforts to restore degraded ecosystems.
It is a crucial part of the bloc’s 2030 biodiversity strategy which, in turn, forms a core area of the European Green Deal.
The new law aims to restore ecosystems, including species and habitats that exist on EU’s land and in seas to:
enable the long-term and sustained recovery of biodiverse and resilient nature,
contribute to achieving the EU’s climate mitigation and climate adaptation objectives, and
meet international commitments.
According to the European Commission, 81% of habitats in the EU currently have a “poor” status, and one in three bee and butterfly species are in decline.
The Restoration Law also has specific targets :
Reversing the decline of pollinator population by 2030
No net loss of green urban space and tree cover by 2030, an increase in their area thereafter
Increasing stock of organic carbon
Restoring drained peatlands under agricultural use
Restoring the habitats of iconic marine species such as dolphins and porpoises, sharks and seabirds
Restoring at least 25,000 km of rivers to a free-flowing state by 2030
What are the challenges?
As seen in other plans of ecological preservation across the world, securing funding is always a significant roadblock.
The European Greens, a transnational political party focused on pro-climate action and environmental conservation in Europe, also suffered heavy losses in the recently-concluded European Parliament elections, which will make the task tougher, going forward.
COMMENTS