EU parliament adopts nature restoration law as food security risk rises

The European Parliament has adopted its position on the EU nature restoration law with 336 votes in favour, 300 against and 13 abstentions. A vote to reject the EC’s proposal did not pass.

The EC adopted the proposals to restore damaged ecosystems and bring back nature across Europe last June, despite strong opposition from Conservatives.

The EC also proposed to reduce the use of chemical pesticides by 50% by 2030. It said the flagship legislative proposals will help ensure the resilience and security of food supply in the EU and across the world.

The news from the parliament came as Germany faced up to another summer of supply chain chaos as the river Rhine neared non-navigable levels and southern Europe faced up to record high temperatures.

Fears are also rising that Russia will not extend a United Nations-brokered deal that allows grain to flow from Ukraine to parts of the world struggling with hunger. Turkey and the UN negotiated the breakthrough accord last summer to ease a global food crisis, along with a separate agreement with Russia to facilitate shipments of its food and fertilizer.

Russian officials repeatedly say there are no grounds for extending the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which is up for its fourth renewal Monday.

Opponents of the EU’s nature restoration law are led by lobbyists in favour of intensive agriculture, fisheries and the forestry industry. They say that the law would cut jobs and undermine food and energy security.

But, against this tense backdrop, the MEPs that supported the law stressed that restoring the ecosystem is key to combating climate change and biodiversity loss, and would reduce risks to food security.

They said that the draft law does not impose the creation of new protected areas in the EU or block new renewable energy infrastructure. The MEPs added a new article underlining that such installations are overwhelmingly in the public interest.

MEPs said they support the EC’s proposal to put restoration measures in place by 2030 covering at least 20% of all land and sea areas in the EU.

“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. Parliament also foresees a possibility to postpone the targets under exceptional socioeconomic consequences,” said its press service.

After the vote, rapporteur César Luena, said: “The nature restoration Law is an essential piece of the European Green Deal and follows the scientific consensus and recommendations to restore Europe’s ecosystems. Farmers and fishers will benefit from it and it ensures a habitable earth for future generations. Our position adopted today sends a clear message. Now we must continue the good work, defend our ground during the negotiations with member states and reach an agreement before the end of this parliament’s mandate to pass the first regulation on nature restoration in the EU’s history.”

The EU Parliament is now ready to start negotiations with the council on the final shape of the legislation.

In a recent podcast with Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, the public broadcaster for the German federal states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, respected economics expert Claudia Kemfert said that the nature restoration law will provide vital “insurance” for Europe against future droughts, flooding and other climate change-related extreme weather events.

“This issue has a lot to do with nature. With the renaturation law, the EU wants to renature forests, moors, water areas and also agricultural areas. We are talking about Europe’s largest nature conservation initiative. The key is to restore habitats that are currently in poor condition,” she said.