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The Community
Biodiversity Strategy
provides the framework for developing Community policies
and instruments in order to comply with the Convention on
Biological Diversity.
The basis is provided by the Article 6 of the CBD that specifically
requests each party to "develop national strategies,
plans or programmes for the conservation and sustainable use
of biological diversity or adapt for this purpose existing
strategies, plans or programmes which shall reflect, inter
alia, the measures set out in this Convention relevant to
the Contracting Party concerned".
The Biodiversity Strategy aims to identify gaps in the European
Community conservation policy, and to promote biological diversity
into the policies of the Community, complementary to strategies,
programmes and plans of the Member States, in order to ensure
the full implementation of the CBD. The relevant obligations
of the CBD for the European Community are set out in section
II of the strategy, in the context of four major themes. The
objectives to be achieved in the context of the relevant Community
policies (natural resources, agriculture, fisheries, forests,
tourism, energy and transport, regional policies and spatial
planning, development and economic cooperation) and instruments
in order to meet these obligations, are specified in section
III.
The implementation of the CBD by the Community calls for
a two-step process. The adoption of this strategy containing
the general policy orientation is the first step. The second
is the development and implementation of Biodiversity Action
Plans and other measures by the Commission through its
services responsible for the policy areas concerned. This
second step enables to translate into concrete actions the
objectives derived from the Convention.
Thus four Biodiversity Action Plans (BAPs) were adopted in
2001:
Biodiversity policy review
A review of EU biodiversity policy launched in 2003 aimed to
provide an assessment of the implementation, effectiveness
and appropriateness of the Biodiversity Strategy and Action
Plans. Through the review the EU aimed at delivering the commitment
to halt biodiversity loss (in the EU) by 2010 and to optimise
the EU contribution to the Johannesburg target to significantly
reduce the rate of (global) biodiversity loss by 2010.
As an important milestone in the process, a stakeholder conference
entitled Biodiversity and the EU - Sustaining Life, Sustaining
Livelihoods took place under the auspices of the Irish Presidency
of the European Union between 25-27 May 2004, in Malahide,
Ireland. The result of the conference is a non-binding document
called "Message
from Malahide" setting priority objectives and targets,
as well as the endorsement of the first
set of biodiversity headline indicators and the Killarney
Declaration on research priorities.
Based on the analysis of the review process, the Commission has
identified four key policy areas for action and ten priority
objectives and related to these. In addition, the Commission
has identified four key supporting measures. Within the internet
consultation conducted between end 2005 beginning 2006, the
respondees generally supported the proposed objectives and
measures.
Finally, after long delays the Commission produced a Communication
in May 2006: HALTING
THE LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY BY 2010 AND BEYOND Sustaining
ecosystem services for human well-being. The annexed EU
Action Plan to 2010 and Beyond sets out specific actions
with related targets, which address both EU intitutions and
Member States. The Action Plan also specifies actions and
targets for monitoring, evaluation and reporting. Annex 2
describes the 16 headline indicators
for biodiversity, in line with the proposed global indicators
endorsed by the Convention on Biological Diversity. The
Impact Assessment, which is also annexed to the
Communication, aims to analyse the impact of the actions.
It also provides the European institutions and public with
information on the impacts of biodiversity loss and of proposed
measures to halt this loss.
The four key policy areas and ten priority objectives in the
Biodversity communication
POLICY AREA 1: Biodiversity in the EU
Objectives
1. To safeguard the EU's most important habitats and species.
2. To conserve and restore biodiversity and ecosystem services
in the wider EU
countryside.
3. To conserve and restore biodiversity and ecosystem services
in the wider EU
marine environment.
4. To reinforce compatibility of regional and territorial development
with
biodiversity in the EU.
5. To substantially reduce the impact on EU biodiversity of
invasive alien
species and alien genotypes.
POLICY AREA 2: The EU and global biodiversity
Objectives
6. To substantially strengthen effectiveness of international
governance for
biodiversity and ecosystem services.
7. To substantially strengthen support for biodiversity and
ecosystem services in
EU external assistance.
8. To substantially reduce the impact of international trade
on global
biodiversity and ecosystem services.
POLICY AREA 3: Biodiversity and climate change
Objective
9. To support biodiversity adaptation to climate change.
POLICY AREA 4: The knowledge base
Objective
10. To substantially strengthen the knowledge base for conservation
and
sustainable use of biodiversity, in the EU and globally
THE FOUR KEY SUPPORTING MEASURES
1. Ensuring adequate financing
2. Strengthening EU decision-making
3. Building partnerships
4. Building public education, awareness and participation
DG
Environment - Nature and biodiversity
The
European Community Clearing House Mechanism - EC CHM
Biodiversity
Strategy
Biodiversity
Action Plans in the areas of Conservation of Natural Resources,
Agriculture, Fisheries, and Development and Economic Co-operation
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