3 May 2011: The European Commission has published a strategy for the EU to protect and improve the state of Europe’s biodiversity and contribute to the 2020 global biodiversity targets.

The strategy, contained in the Commission Communication titled “Our life insurance, our natural capital: an EU biodiversity strategy to 2020,” is aimed at reversing biodiversity loss and speeding up the EU’s transition towards a resource-efficient and green economy. It builds on the commitments made by EU leaders in March 2010 on halting the loss of biodiversity in the EU by 2020 and protecting, valuing and restoring EU biodiversity and ecosystem services by 2050. It also is a response to the global commitments made at the 10th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 10) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), in Nagoya, Japan, in October 2010.

The Strategy addresses the drivers of biodiversity loss in the EU, as well as global aspects of biodiversity loss, through a multi-sectoral approach. It features six priority targets: fully implementing existing EU legislation on nature protection; improving and restoring ecosystems and ecosystem services wherever possible, notably by the increased use of green infrastructure; ensuring the sustainability of agriculture and forestry activities; safeguarding and protecting EU fish stocks; controlling invasive alien species; and stepping up the EU’s contribution to concerted global action to avert biodiversity loss.

On the latter priority target, global action on biodiversity loss, the Strategy provides that the Commission will enhance the contribution of the EU’s bilateral trade policy to conserving biodiversity, and address potential negative impacts by: systematically including biodiversity as part of trade negotiations and dialogues with third countries; identifying and evaluating potential impacts on biodiversity resulting from the liberalization of trade and investment through ex-ante Trade Sustainability Impact Assessments and ex-post evaluations; and seeking to include in all new bilateral trade agreements a chapter on sustainable development providing for substantial environmental provisions of importance in the trade context, including on biodiversity goals.

In addition, the Commission is expected to: work towards reforming, phasing out and eliminating harmful subsidies at both EU and member State level, and providing positive incentives for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use; and systematically screen the EU’s development cooperation action to minimize any negative impact on biodiversity by undertaking Strategic Environmental Assessments and/or Environmental Impact Assessments for actions likely to have significant effects on biodiversity.

Furthermore, the Commission is expected to improve the effectiveness of EU funding for global biodiversity by: supporting natural capital assessments in recipient countries and the development and/or updating of National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), and by improving coordination within the EU and with key non-EU donors in implementing biodiversity assistance/projects.

In addition, the Commission is expected to propose new EU legislation to implement the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS), so the EU can ratify the Protocol as soon as possible. According to the strategy, the prompt ratification of the Nagoya Protocol is needed for the EU “to continue to lead international biodiversity policy,” as is the fulfillment of specific commitments relating to resource mobilization undertaken under the CBD.

Finally, the EU is also expected to support ongoing efforts to improve collaboration, synergies and the establishment of common priorities among the biodiversity-related conventions and among the Rio Conventions.

The strategy targets and actions proposed by the Commission need to be endorsed by the European Parliament and the Council of EU ministers for the environment. Following such endorsement, the strategy is expected to undergo a mid-term review in early 2014, with a view to feeding into the preparation of the EU’s fifth National Report to the CBD. [EU Press Release] [Publication: Our life insurance, our natural capital: an EU biodiversity strategy to 2020]