EESC: Thematic debate – Nature Restoration Law in the focus of Civil Society

On 27 February, the European Parliament approved the long-debated Nature Restoration Law[1]. The text requires Member States to introduce measures restoring nature on 20% of the EU’s land and sea by 2030, and all ecosystems in need of restoration by 2050. It sets specific, legally binding targets and obligations for nature restoration in various ecosystems — from agricultural land and forests to marine, freshwater and urban ecosystems.

Member States will be required to avoid significant deterioration in healthy habitats, and introduce targeted measures to increase the quality of grassland butterfly populations, nature-friendly features like hedges on farmland, and/or carbon storage in soils. After concerns from some Member States over the cost of introducing nature-boosting measures, the European Commission agreed to allocate more funding. The law also provides for an emergency brake, so targets for agricultural ecosystems can be suspended under exceptional circumstances if they severely reduce the land needed for sufficient food production.

The file will now be presented to the Council, which will have to approve it by qualified majority before it can enter into force.

Against this backdrop, the Civil Society Organisations’ Group will hold a thematic debate on the Nature Restoration Law during its meeting on 20 March 2024 from 12:00 to 13:00. The Group itself includes representatives from farmers’, consumers’ and environmental organisations from the 27 EU Member States. Moreover, the Group invited the following guest speakers to contribute to its debate:

• Sofie Ruysschaert, EU Nature Restoration Policy Officer, BirdLife Europe
• Niall Curley, Senior Policy Advisor on Environmental issues, Copa Cogeca

The Civil Society Organisations’ Group invites you to follow the debate live via the streaming on this event page on 20 March as of 12:00.

The streaming will be available in EN/FR/DE.