The European Commission is proposing to set legally binding nature restoration targets on both sea and land.
The Nature Restoration Law will apply to every EU member state and will complement existing laws and targets.
The proposal has been welcomed by Irish marine environmental network Fair Seas and Birdwatch Ireland – with the latter organisation describing it as “transformative for Ireland’s degraded ecosystems”.
It will also “help us tackle climate breakdown”, according to Birdwatch Ireland, pointing out that degraded habitats are less resilient to the effects of climate change.
As it states, 85% of Ireland’s internationally important habitats are in poor condition and not able to function properly, which means we cannot fully avail of the services they provide such as carbon storage in peatlands and flood attenuation.
Also, 26% of Ireland’s birds regularly occurring bird species are Red Listed birds of conservation concern in Ireland with farmland birds the fastest declining group of birds. One third of Ireland's wild bee species are threatened with extinction, it stays.
Birdwatch Ireland’s marine policy and advocacy officer Sinéad Loughran said that “a healthy, thriving ocean is fundamental for the survival of humankind,but the reality is that our seas have never been in a worse state than they are today”.
“Twenty-three of Ireland’s twenty-four breeding seabirds are red or amber listed birds of conservation concern. Ensuring they have sufficient fish to eat is essential,”she said.
“If given a proper chance, and with a helping hand, our ocean will have the chance to heal, and nature can be restored at sea. With a strong EU Nature Restoration Law, there is the chance to reverse much of the harm caused by humans and fisheries,”Ms Loughran said.
Birdwatch Ireland head of advocacy Oonagh Duggan noted that a the recent National Biodiversity conference, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that "the business case for biodiversity is compelling: the benefits of restoring nature outweigh the costs ten-fold, and the cost of inaction is even higher."
“We now need the Irish government to back the highest ambition possible in this law and to set up a Nature Restoration fund to restore our decimated biodiversity and to provide a safe future for all of us,”Ms Duggan said.
Fair Seas said that highly or fully protected marine protected areas (MPAs) are “known globally as the best way to restore marine environments”.
“By setting up large no-take zones, where no industrial activity is permitted, Ireland can implement this new law to meet its full potential for biodiversity recovery and climate stabilisation,”it said.
“The law states that habitats and ecosystems with the ‘greatest potential for removing and storing carbon and preventing or reducing the impact of natural disasters such as floods will be the top priorities”, it said.
“These criteria put Ireland in a prime position as our marine ecosystems like seagrass meadows and kelp forests offer both storm protection and store large amounts of carbon. The sediments of our continental shelf area have also been identified as areas with enormous carbon storage capacity if undisturbed by industrial activity,” Fair Seas said.
“Only 6.4% of the ocean globally is covered by MPAs and less than 2% are no-take MPAs, where full protection is given to the ecosystem and species at risk,” it said.
“ The new ecosystem restoration bill offers Ireland the opportunity to revitalise our seas. No-take MPAs offer the entire ecosystem the chance to recover, from the seafloor to the shoaling surface waters and the rocky outcrops of nesting seabird colonies,” Fair Seas said.
“Currently, only 2% of Ireland’s seas are protected, however, there is no active monitoring or management in place to ensure they are actually protected,”it said.
Fair Seas is calling for 30% of Ireland’s waters to be placed within MPAs by the year 2030.
“This aligns with our government's previous international commitments and would satisfy our new obligations within the Nature Restoration Law,”it said.
The Fair Seas campaign is led by a coalition of Ireland’s environmental non-governmental organisations and networks, including Irish Wildlife Trust, Birdwatch Ireland, Sustainable Water Network, Friends of the Irish Environment, Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, the Coomhola Salmon Trust, Irish Environmental Network and Coastwatch.
Fair Seas is funded by Oceans 5, Blue Nature Alliance, BFCT and The Wyss Foundation.
