MEPs adopt report on mid-term review of the EU Biodiversity strategy – EU law needs stronger implementation
Today, an overwhelming majority of the Members of the European Parliament voted for better implementation of the EU Nature Directives.
In their own-initiative report the Parliament stated that the 2020 biodiversity targets will not be achieved without additional efforts, while existing EU Nature Directives should be better implemented instead of being revised.
Lead MEP Mark Demesmaeker said that the mid-term review of the European Biodiversity Strategy 2011 – 2020 makes it crystal clear that substantial additional efforts are needed to reach the 2020 goals. Biodiversity provides numerous valuable ecosystem services on which we are extremely dependent, such as clean air, clean water and pollination. Missing the 2020 target is estimated to cost 50 billion euro a year. He added that it is important to highlight that investing in nature is also necessary from a socio-economic point of view and that nature and economic development are not mutually exclusive.
The own-initiative report was adopted with 592 votes to 52, with 45 abstentions.
Source: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news
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