Biodiversity Archives

Nations opposed to deep sea mineral mining and those in favor of exploiting the oceans' depths butted heads in Jamaica on Wednesday (26 July), with both sides arguing their position would help protect the planet.

EU negotiators met on Wednesday (19 July) to hash out the details of the EU’s Nature Restoration Law, following a nail-biting victory for the proposal in the European Parliament last week.

Protecting our planet means taking urgent action on building clean energy and supporting vibrant ecosystems. The two ambitions can be compatible, but this requires collaboration, writes Kate Wallace-Lockhart.

Lawmakers in the European Parliament voted in favour of the EU Nature Restoration Law on Wednesday (12 July), defeating a right-wing attempt to reject it and paving the way for discussions with EU countries to finalise the contested legislation.

Irish members of the conservative European People’s Party (EPP) Seán Kelly and Deirdre Clune will not support their group’s rejection of the EU’s Nature Restoration Law, the MEPs announced on Tuesday, less than 24 hours before the decisive vote in the European Parliament.

The European Parliament should adopt an "integral and holistic vision" on nature and the environment because these are issues that affect society and future generations, Spanish Ecological Transition Minister Teresa Ribera and European Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius urged on Monday.

For the sake of future generations, EU lawmakers must lay politics aside and support the Nature Restoration Law in the European Parliament this week, write a group of climate activists from across Europe.

The European Union’s nature restoration law may not be perfect and will touch the lives of millions of people, including farmers, fishers and foresters. But we should not let this become an excuse to give up and kill it next week, as some are suggesting, writes Paul Polman.

The Commission’s new proposal for a soil monitoring law falls behind the initial ambition of giving soil a protected status similar to that of air or water, according to Green lawmakers and campaigners.

The EU’s widely contested Nature Restoration Law has barely survived the many attempts to take it down. An alternative vision for forestry, provided by the EU's proposed legislation, is what can save Europe’s forests from destruction, writes Marcus Walsh. 

The scented stands of pine trees stretching along France's southwestern Atlantic coastline were reduced to charred stumps and stacks of blackened timber by the massive fires that ravaged the tourist hotspots of the Landes forest last summer.

The South American trade bloc Mercosur opens a two-day summit Monday (3 July) with a deal with the European Union on the agenda, but few expect leaders to reach consensus on how to fulfill EU demands on environmental protections.

Europe’s forests must be restored to strengthen them against new threats brought about by climate change, but communities, local knowledge and foresters need to be at the heart of this to make it a success.

Ireland needs to restore its nature and address climate change to tackle the wildlife loss, water stress and rising sea temperatures it is currently experiencing, Ireland’s climate and environment minister Eamon Ryan told EURACTIV in an exclusive interview.

Europe’s law to restore nature is in the balance, following a vote in the European Parliament's environment committee on Tuesday (27 June) that opened up the possibility for it to be definitively rejected by lawmakers during a whole Parliament vote in July.

Europe’s forests are threatened by the growing frequency of pests, fires and droughts caused by climate change, raising concerns as to whether they are resilient enough to continue sustaining biodiversity as well as human activity.

In this special report, EURACTIV looks at how the EU’s proposed Nature Restoration Law can help strengthen Europe’s forests and make them more resilient to shocks caused by climate change – including pests, fires and drought.

The European Union's powerful lending arm, the European Investment Bank, expects to back its first 'debt-for-nature' swap this year as it bolsters efforts to stem biodiversity loss.

EU environment ministers approved their position on a historic law to restore Europe's ecosystems on Tuesday (20 June), marking a turning point for the embattled proposal.

European Union countries' environment ministers will attempt on Tuesday (20 June) to agree a common position on the bloc's landmark law to restore deteriorating natural habitats, having watered down the proposal after pushback from some governments.

Finland’s wolf population has increased by 10% every year since 2017, with the latest estimates suggesting 310 wolves living in the country, according to a report by the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) published on Wednesday.

Indonesia and Malaysia have accused the EU’s anti-deforestation law of unfairly penalising small farmers, arguing that the regulation's complex requirements will financially strain those least able to afford it - allegations the European Commission has rejected.

Can we achieve the Green Deal without protecting nature?  Simply put, no - it is as central to the energy strategy as it is to meeting environmental goals, write Noor Yafai and Kristian Ruby.

The European Commission is expected to publish an update of its sustainable finance taxonomy on Tuesday (13 June), setting the stage for a showdown with green activists over biodiversity offsetting projects meant to compensate for the environmental damage caused by human activity.