On Wednesday, the EU’s controversial restoration regulation survived a tight vote in the plenary session of the EU Parliament.
The EU restoration regulation is moving forward. Last year Sanna Marini (sd.) the regulation, which was also challenged by the government, survived the continuation on Wednesday in the plenary session of the EU Parliament in Strasbourg, France.
Parliament approved its position on the regulation with 336 votes in favor, 300 against and 13 abstentions. The proposal to reject the commission’s proposal was rejected by a vote of 312–324.
The regulation that has now been voted to continue is a lighter version of the package contested by Marini’s government.
The core of the regulation is still ambitious: EU restoration measures must cover at least 20 percent of all land and water areas by 2030.
Next, the exact content of the law will be negotiated in the so-called trilogy, i.e. between the EU Parliament, the EU Commission and the Council of Ministers of the EU member states.
MTK and WWF cautiously hopeful
Chairman of the Confederation of Agricultural and Forestry Producers (MTK), which promotes the interests of forest owners and farmers Juha Marttilan according to the passage of the regulation was disappointing in itself.
– The number one wish would have been for this to be rejected and for the regulation to be prepared again. On the other hand, the Parliament’s position is much better than the Commission’s (original) proposal.
Compared to this, Marttila describes the end result as “surprisingly good”. Marttila sees the changes made to agricultural issues as the most significant.
– It’s a huge improvement that agriculture, especially the pulling of peat fields, was completely removed from the package.
According to Marttila, the most “matters open to interpretation” were now removed from issues related to forestry.
– For example, this ban on undermining endangered ecosystems, which would have been Pandora’s Box. The parliament was of the opinion that no one would understand this.
The environmental organization WWF is also satisfied with the passage of the regulation. Director of Protection Jari Luukkonen according to now it was really the case.
– This was an extremely important, positive decision, albeit at a high price.
If a positive decision had not been reached, it would have meant burying the “EU’s green deal”. Stopping the loss of nature before 2030 would have become really difficult, Luukkonen sees.
– If the Jahka regulation is finally approved after the trilogue negotiations, then there will be stronger guiding legislation than the ones currently in force.
According to Luukkonen, this will eventually be visible to ordinary Finns as the restoration of bogs, the improvement of the state of the Baltic Sea and the increasing regulation of forestry.