Updated with reactions

EU environment ministers agreed on Monday to green-light a regulation that aims to restore natural habitats, ending a year-long legislative back-and-forth in what campaigners hailed as an “historic step” in the fight against the biodiversity and climate crises.

The EU’s Nature Restoration Law (NRL) was the first point addressed during Monday’s Environment Council gathering in Luxembourg, with a public session during which most EU member states declared their support to the file.

A minority of countries maintained their opposition: Finland, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden.

The text, already agreed with the European Parliament, will oblige EU member states to restore at least 30% of habitat types covered in the bill by 2030, prioritising protected sites under the existing Natura 2000 network.

“Finally, the EU is better equipped to fight two major crises of our time, the extinction of species and the climate crisis,” said Green Party MEP Jutta Paulus, who acted as a shadow rapporteur in the Parliament’s environment committee during negotiations.

“With the adoption of the Nature Restoration Law, the EU can travel to the upcoming global biodiversity conference in Colombia knowing it has kept its promise,” she added, referring to COP16 summit in Cali from Oct. 21 to Nov. 1.

“It is the result of hard work, which has paid off,” added Belgium’s Minister for Climate Transition Alain Maron, who presided the discussion ahead of the Council’s vote.

***Read Carbon Pulse’s recap on nature law’s unfortunate journey***

‘ROGUE MINISTER’

Austrian representative Leonore Gewessler played a key role, taking her country on the supporters’ side after it previously opposed the law.

“We must proceed, because this is a pivotal,” Gewessler said during the debate ahead of her vote in favour of the adoption.

She did so in open contrast with the chancellor, Karl Nehammer, arguing he couldn’t legally speak for Austria when he refused to back the regulation.

“We regret that you have become involved in Austrian domestic political disputes,” Gewessler wrote in a letter to the Belgian presidency.

The People’s Party (OVP) then said it will launch a “criminal complaint” against Gewessler for “abuse of office”, although her vote in the Council remains valid.

“The EU on Monday proved it can still pass a green bill. All it took was a rogue Austrian minister willing to throw away her job, get sued by her own government, and potentially tank her entire coalition,” Politico reported.

HAPPY REACTIONS

Campaigners rejoiced at today’s decision, calling it “a historic step” in the fight against the biodiversity and climate crises.

“Intact ecosystems are important to mitigate the consequences of the climate crisis, for example by increasing water retention and providing better protection against extreme weather conditions,” said Helmut Burtscher-Schaden, deputy representative biodiversity at the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) Save bees and farmers.

Noor Yafai, Europe director for global policy and institutional partnerships at NGO Nature Conservancy, expressed her relief and optimism: “A notable aspect of this legislation is its potential to unlock significant investment in nature and biodiversity,” she said.

“Within a year of the law coming into power, the European Commission plans to identify a range of sustainable financing measures to support the law’s implementation, and this poses a major opportunity to leverage public funds by unlocking large-scale private sector investments,” Yafai added. “Business supporters have already recognised the potential for this law to catalyse hundreds of millions of Euros in private financing, setting a transformative precedent for global environmental efforts.”

The #RestoreNature coalition, consisting of BirdLife Europe, ClientEarth, the European Environmental Bureau (EEB), and WWF EU, said “now, we need all hands on deck” and “member states must properly implement this legislation without delay in their countries, in close collaboration with all involved stakeholders.”

By Emanuela Barbiroglio – emanuela@carbon-pulse.com