The EU Commission has launched the public consultation on the Biodiversity Strategy. The public consultation is open until 5th of April 2021
The purpose of this consultation is to gather information and feedback from stakeholders and the wider public on the implementation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 and on the application of the EU Regulation on Invasive Alien Species, as well as to inform the Impact Assessment that will underpin the Commission’s proposal for binding EU nature restoration targets.
The main objective of the EU initiative is to restore degraded ecosystems, in particular those with the most potential to:
- Capture and store carbon,
- Prevent and reduce the impact of natural disasters
- Deliver further benefits, such as soil health and pollination
- Improve knowledge and monitoring of ecosystems and their services.
This consultation covers three separate EU biodiversity policy initiatives:
- The evaluation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 (2011-2020),
- The review of the application of the EU Regulation on Invasive Alien Species,
- The development of legally binding EU nature restoration targets: a key commitment of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.
These policy initiatives are inter-connected. The EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 set the EU biodiversity policy framework for the period 2011-2020. The evaluation of the Strategy is ongoing. The EU Regulation on Invasive Alien Species was adopted in implementation of Target 5 of the 2020 Biodiversity Strategy. In May 2020, the Commission published a Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. One of the core commitments in the Strategy is to propose, by the end of 2021, a legally binding instrument setting EU targets to restore damaged ecosystems by 2030.
Binding EU Nature restoration targets
The 3rd initiative 'The development of legally binding EU nature restoration targets: a key commitment of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030' is related to the 'Inception Impact Assessment on the EU nature restoration targets'. Please take part in this consultation as you can stress in your response the importance on soil health and carbon sequestration.
The public consultation on nature restoration targets can be assessed here.