STATEMENT: Conservation International on the new EU Nature Restoration Law
July 12, 2023
BRUSSELS (July 12, 2023) – Conservation International-Europe’s Senior Vice President for Global Public Partnerships, Herbert Lust, issued the following statement today in response to the passage of the EU Nature Restoration Law by the European Parliament. The law will require EU member states to each preserve a portion of their natural ecosystems and vulnerable habitats.
Lust said:
“We commend the European Parliament for passing the Nature Restoration Law. Codified targets for restoring degraded nature are a meaningful step forward in the wake of last year’s historic Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. But stepping is no longer sufficient — we must leap.
“While this is a marked improvement over no law, it falls short of the 30% target agreed to by all EU states in Montreal, and it is less than what the European Parliament itself called for in 2020. We hope that this law's passage will be just the beginning of exponential progress, and that the EU will continue asserting its climate and biodiversity leadership through increasingly bold legislative action.”
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About Conservation International: Conservation International protects nature for the benefit of humanity. Through science, policy, fieldwork and finance, we spotlight and secure the most important places in nature for the climate, for biodiversity and for people. With offices in 30 countries and projects in more than 100 countries, Conservation International partners with governments, companies, civil society, Indigenous peoples and local communities to help people and nature thrive together. Go to Conservation.org for more, and follow our work on Conservation News, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
