The EU's restoration regulation has been approved on Monday by the EU's Environment Council. In the Council, 20 member countries sided with the regulation, Finland voted against the regulation with five other countries (including Sweden, the Netherlands and Poland).<\/p>\n
The EU Parliament approved the controversial regulation in February. Now that the Council of Europe has also approved it, the member countries are starting to draw up national restoration plans. It takes two years to prepare these.<\/p>\n
Finland is still dissatisfied with the regulation. Among other things, the regulation has been estimated to cause relatively higher costs for Finland than other member countries.<\/p>\n
\"Even though the restoration regulation is now clearly more feasible for Finland than previous versions, we still could not support the end result, because there would have been opportunities for a fairer distribution of costs,\" says Environment and Climate Minister Kai Mykk\u00e4nen in a press release.<\/p>\n
According to him, however, the need to moderate expenses and act fairly was widely supported at the council meeting.<\/p>\n
\"Now we are going to look for the means by which the implementation of the regulation is as cost-effective as possible under Finnish conditions and compatible with our businesses,\" Mykk\u00e4nen says.<\/p>\n
The restoration regulation is part of the EU's biodiversity strategy. Its goal is to improve the state of nature both in protected areas and outside them.<\/p>\n
According to the regulation, by 2030, EU member states must carry out restoration measures on at least 20 percent of the EU's land and sea areas. At least 30 percent of degraded natural habitats must be restored by 2030, 60 percent by 2040, and 90 percent by 2050.<\/p>\n
Swedish Forest Industries Federation criticizes EU nature restoration law for imbalance and economic risks<\/strong><\/p>\n EU environment ministers, led by Belgium, narrowly passed the Nature Restoration Law despite uncertainties about Austria\u2019s position, and this law is unbalanced, said the Swedish Forest Industries Federation (SFIF) in a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe law faced sharp criticism and chaotic processes in the EU Parliament and Council. While the goal of restoring nature is good and aligns with SFIF\u2019s Sustainability Roadmap, the legislation has serious flaws,\u201d said Viveka Beckeman, SFIF's director general.<\/p>\n SFIF's main criticism is that the law doesn't account for differences between member states, especially in their interpretation of the Habitats Directive and historical land use practices. This oversight risks significant economic impacts from land use restrictions, particularly on forestry.<\/p>\n \u201cMany member states and the EU Parliament criticized the law for ignoring other societal goals like access to renewable raw materials, making it harder to meet climate targets,\u201d Beckeman noted.<\/p>\n Beckeman added that implementing the law will be challenging. Member states need to align their habitat assessments and restoration needs and agree on effective measures to balance restoration with other policy goals and reduce negative impacts on society.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The EU’s restoration regulation has been approved on Monday by the EU’s Environment Council. In the Council, 20 member countries sided with the regulation, Finland voted against the regulation with five other countries (including Sweden, the Netherlands and Poland). The … Continue reading