13/07/2023 08:45
Following a heated political debate on Tuesday, the European Parliament (EP) adopted on Wednesday its position on the EU nature restoration law with 336 votes in favour, 300 against and 13 abstentions. Following the plenary’s vote, the EP is now ready to start negotiations with the Council on the final shape of the legislation.
Earlier, a vote to reject the Commission’s proposal did not pass, with 312 votes in favour, 324 against and 12 abstentions. This puts to rest a long period of political debates on the matter, which worried the Commission as the proposal was facing the risk of being dismissed.
MEPs support the Commission’s proposal to put restoration measures in place by 2030 covering at least 20% of all land and sea areas in the EU and underline that restoring the ecosystem is key to combating climate change and biodiversity loss, and reduces risks to food security. EPP’s opposition to the proposal was justified by the Party’s concern’s for food security.
Also, the MEPs stress that the draft law does not impose the creation of new protected areas in the EU nor block new renewable energy infrastructure as they added a new article underlining that such installations are overwhelmingly in the public interest.
The Parliament says that the law shall only apply when the Commission has provided data on the necessary conditions to guarantee long-term food security and when EU countries have quantified the area that needs to be restored to reach the restoration targets for each habitat type. The Parliament also foresees a possibility to postpone the targets under exceptional socioeconomic consequences.
An EP press release notes that, within 12 months of this Regulation entering into force, the Commission would have to assess any gap between restoration financial needs and available EU funding and look into solutions to bridge such a gap, in particular through a dedicated EU instrument.
After the vote, rapporteur César Luena (SD, ES), said that “the Nature Restoration Law is an essential piece of the European Green Deal” and added that “farmers and fishers will benefit from it and it ensures a habitable earth for future generations." Also, according to the Commission, the new law would bring significant economic benefits, as every euro invested would result in at least 8 euros in benefits.