The preparation of the EU Nature Restoration Law stays active. The Finnish Forest Industries Federation seeks for a coherent legislation which has  appropriate goals and which respects the subsidiarity principle and different aspects of sustainability.  


The European Parliament voted for their report on Nature Restoration on a plenary session in July. That started the trilogue negotiations between the Commission, the Council, and the Parliament. In the trilogues there are on the table 3 different positions from the Commission’s position consisting very ambitions restoration goals and high costs for member states, to the Parliaments more realistic report where, for example, has been stated the member states shall aim to put in place the restoration measures in Natura 2000 sites. The councils position lands somewhere between of those two.


Spain has expressed its willingness to complete the negotiations during its presidency, which indicates an active autumn with talk on nature restoration.


The Finnish Forest Industries Federation calls for balanced consideration of the Member States’ regional characteristics as well as social, environmental, and economic sustainability in the legislation. That can be achieved based on the Parliaments position. The biodiversity enhancement needs to be done by looking into the future, not the past. Also, it is important to keep in mind that restoration is not the only mean to improve biodiversity. For this reason, for example the re-establishment level should not be locked in a precise state of the nature. The restoration measures should be targeted on those areas where scientifically justified taking into account overall sustainability. In addition, the member states should have more flexibility to choose the forest indicators best suitable for their forests.

‍