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Yes! Amazing news! The EU Parliament just voted through the EU Nature Restoration Law, which aims to restore our badly degraded ecosystems. The law will set legally binding targets for nature restoration in member states.

Next stop, writing it into law at a country level.

Suck it European People's Party, suck it European Conservatives. Some of us actually want .

politico.eu/article/parliament

POLITICOParliament backs new EU nature law in blow to conservativesBy Louise Guillot
Brendan Jones

If you’re wondering what the actual restoration targets look like, go to eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-conten and scroll down to “Chapter II RESTORATION TARGETS AND OBLIGATIONS”. It’s all a bit legalese-speak though.

In plainer English, some of the targets are:

1. Reversing the decline of pollinator populations by 2030 and increasing their populations from there on,

(Cont. below…)

2. No net loss of green urban spaces by 2030, a 5% increase by 2050, a minimum of 10% tree canopy cover in every European city, town, and suburb, and net gain of green space that is integrated to buildings and infrastructure,

3. In agricultural ecosystems, overall increase of biodiversity, and a positive trend for grassland butterflies, farmland birds, organic carbon in cropland mineral soils and high-diversity landscape features on agricultural land.

(Cont. below …)

4. Restoration and rewetting of drained peatlands under agricultural use and in peat extraction sites,

5. In forest ecosystems, overall increase of biodiversity and a positive trend for forest connectivity, deadwood, share of uneven-aged forests, forest birds and stock of organic carbon,

6. Restoring marine habitats such as seagrasses or sediment bottoms, and restoring the habitats of iconic marine species such as dolphins and porpoises, sharks and seabirds,

(Almost there …)

7. Removing river barriers so that at least 25 000 km of rivers would be turned into free-flowing rivers by 2030.

That’s not all the targets and their implementation details, but it gives you a good idea of what’s coming. Of course, the requirements could be even stronger, but given the European Peoples Party were doing their best to get this watered down as is, I’m just happy that all of this is going into law.

@Brendanjones these are all excellent targets, and I'm not knocking them. But how much serious political committment is there behind them? To what extent are they more greenwashing and distraction?

@simon_brooke well they’ll be legally mandated so there has to be some commitment. However I’m not sure of the repercussions, if any, of not meeting the targets - I haven’t read the legislation in full. If countries actually take action to meet the targets then I wouldn’t say it’s greenwashing or a distraction; these are real, worthy goals.

@simon_brooke but this is just my read on the situation based on the little I know. I’m not an expert on this particular bit of legislation and the process around it, nor on each EU country’s stance towards it at present.