EU Nature Restoration Law is passed as Ireland votes to approve

Following months of delay, countries within the European Union have adopted a nature policy aimed at restoring damaged natural areas. This is the first green law to be passed since this month's elections for the European Parliament. The Netherlands, Poland, Finland, Hungary, Italy, and Sweden voted against the bill, while Belgium abstained.

One of the largest environmental laws in the EU is the nature restoration law, which mandates that by 2030, member states implement plans to restore nature on a fifth of their land and sea.

The policy was given just enough support to pass after Austria's environment minister, Leonore Gewessler of the Greens, defied her conservative coalition partners by pledging to support it.

The policy includes specific targets, such as restoring peat lands so they can absorb CO2 emissions, and aims to reverse the decline of Europe's natural habitats, of which 81% are deemed to be in poor health. Its effective implementation is critical to stopping the loss of biodiversity and restoring large areas of Ireland's wetlands. All too frequently, accelerating species decline results in the extinction of plants, wildbirds, and mammals in addition to pollinators and soil degradation from intensive agriculture.

According to the Plant Atlas 2020 report by the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland, more than half of native plant species in Ireland are declining, with native grasslands experiencing the greatest decline. Over 70% of habitats are negatively impacted by agricultural practices, which are the primary causes of this decline. Also, estimates from the Environmental Protection Agency state that the economic value of our ecosystem services is approximately €2.6 billion. However, habitat degradation and biodiversity loss are occurring at an accelerated rate throughout Europe, including Ireland. To safeguard both our natural resources and our economy, Ireland must enhance its biodiversity data collection practices and keep an eye on the effects of climate change.

Member states were urged to enact the law as soon as possible by a coalition of environmental organizations led by WWF Europe. Campaigners also celebrated the vote as a “historic” victory for Europe’s nature.

A typical landscape in Ireland. The Gap of Dunloe in County Kerry taken by Conor Doherty Photography.