BRUSSELS (AP) – European Union (EU) countries on Monday gave final approval to a major and long-awaited plan to better protect nature in the 27-nation bloc, a divisive issue after months of protests by farmers who argued that EU environmental and climate laws were driving them towards bankruptcy.
After surviving a razor-thin vote by lawmakers last summer, the so-called Nature Restoration Plan faced opposition from several member states, leaving the bill deadlocked for months.
The law, which aims at restoring ecosystems, species and habitats in the EU, was finally adopted at a meeting of environment ministers in Luxembourg after rallying the required support from a qualified majority representing 15 of the 27 member states and 65 per cent of the EU population. Austria’s vote in favour of the plan helped to break the stalemate.
“This is the final step before this law can enter into force,” said the Belgian presidency of the EU Council.
The Nature Restoration plan is part of the EU’s European Green Deal that seeks to establish the world’s most ambitious climate and biodiversity targets and make the bloc the global point of reference on all climate issues.
Under the plan, member states will have to meet restoration targets for specific habitats and species, to cover at least 20 per cent of the region’s land and sea areas by 2030.
“The result of hard work has paid off,” said Belgian Environment Minister Alain Maron.
“There can be no pause in protecting our environment. The EU Council makes the choice to restore nature in the EU, protecting its biodiversity and our living environment.”
Austria’s Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler, voted for the plan after months of domestic political debate. The move by Gewessler, a member of the Green party, infuriated the senior partner in the coalition government – Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s conservative Austrian People’s Party – ahead of a national election set for September 29.
“My conscience tells me unmistakably (that) when the healthy and happy life of future generations is at stake, courageous decisions are needed,” Gewessler wrote on social network X.
Ahead of the vote, the chancellery said Nehammer informed the Belgian EU presidency that a vote in favour of the plan by Gewessler would be unlawful, the Austria Press Agency reported. Nehammer’s office said after the decision that Austria will file a suit at the European Court of Justice to nullify the vote.
An EU official said Gewessler’s vote was legally binding and that the Council’s legal service had confirmed this point. The person was not authorised to speak publicly in line with EU practices.
