Farmers Must Be Empowered For New EU Nature Law To Work, Scientists Say

Scientists stressed the importance of involving and empowering farmers for the European Union's planned nature restoration bill to ensure its success, following widespread objections that have jeopardized the program.

Empowering Farmers

In an open letter, renowned biodiversity researchers from around the world stated that while efforts to restore nature are critical for ensuring food supply, farmers must be encouraged to help make agriculture more environmentally friendly if the law is to be successful.

The letter, signed by scholars from the University of Oxford, ETH Zurich, and Wageningen University, states that there has never been more pressure on farmers. They are responsible for feeding an ever-increasing population. And now, we want them to save us all from the global climate and biodiversity crises, while market forces continue to make the financial situation worse.

"We desperately need land to support a resilient agricultural sector. We need our policies to empower farmers to be the heroes we need them to be. But to do this, we are also going to need to save space for nature," the letter read.

Nature Restoration Law

The EU's nature restoration bill, which has been in the works for two years and promises to reverse the bloc's disastrous reduction in nature, appears to be on the verge of failure following months of farmer demonstrations across Europe against some of the measures.

The bill is a crucial component of the EU Biodiversity Strategy, which calls for binding targets to restore damaged ecosystems, particularly those with the greatest potential for carbon absorption and storage, as well as to prevent and mitigate the effects of natural disasters.

If passed, the law would require efforts to reverse biodiversity loss on 20% of member states' land and rivers to begin by the end of the decade. This has been the object of severe opposition from political parties across the bloc that are striving to contain the emergence of the radical right.

Several member nations have lost their support for the legislation, including Hungary and Italy.

The EU was a key player in the COP15 biodiversity negotiations in December 2022, where states committed to safeguarding 30% of the earth for wildlife, repurposing billions of dollars in environmentally detrimental subsidies, and cutting pesticide use.

The EU's inability to pass many targets into law has led to warnings from the European environment commissioner, Virginijus Sinkevičius, that the EU will be unprepared for the biodiversity COP16 in Colombia later this year, undermining its credibility as a trustworthy foreign partner.

World governments have never met a single objective they set for themselves to safeguard biodiversity, a trend that this decade's accord was intended to reverse.

"Policies like the EU restoration law could be vital as we strive to save nature and secure agricultural productivity across Europe," the open letter reads.

The group said that, however, these regulations will be effective only if they are developed in collaboration with farmers. If governments give the correct incentives, farmers can be empowered to build a world where people and nature can thrive together.