On 21 May, the European Union (EU) marked the 20th anniversary of the coming into force of two key instruments for the conservation and sustainable use of nature in the EU: The Habitats Directive and LIFE programme (the EU financing programme for the environment)
Twenty years ago, EU member states unanimously adopted the Habitats Directive to safeguard the most threatened species and habitats across Europe. This was in response to concerns over rapidly declining wildlife and loss of natural habitats, resulting from land-use changes, pollution and urban sprawl. To give species and habitats space to recover, the directive set up the Natura 2000 network of protected areas and the LIFE financial instrument has provided strategic support to its development.
The network today includes some 26,000 protected sites and covers approximately 18% of the EU’s land surface as well as significant sea areas. The network is still being enlarged and management models for the selected sites are being developed. To date, progress with management effectiveness is not the same throughout the EU and there is need to strengthen enforcement of rules and regulations. Additionally, there is need for securing funding for the network. A recent study estimated the total annual cost of managing the network is around €5.8 billion per year which is only 3 euro cents per day per European citizen. Two decades after its adoption, the directive has gone a significant way towards halting the large-scale destruction of our most valuable biodiversity assets, and a number of species and habitats are already showing signs of recovery.
EU funding for nature conservation has increased in the last 20 years. Adopted at the same time as the Habitats Directive, LIFE has contributed over €1.2 billion to the management and restoration of over 2,000 sites falling under the Natura 2000 scheme across the EU.
LIFE-funded projects are responsible for bringing endangered species back from the brink of extinction, like the freshwater pearl mussel in Germany and the Czech Republic, the Abruzzo chamois in Italy, the Hungarian meadow viper and the Spanish imperial eagle. LIFE is also supporting the conservation of the fire-bellied toad in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Latvia.
The LIFE+ Programme is the European Union’s financial instrument supporting environmental policy for the period 2007 to 2013 and succeeds other LIFE environment programmes. Although there are other programmes that partly relate to the environment, LIFE is the only EU funding programme that is entirely devoted to improving the environmental wellbeing of the community.
The current LIFE+ programme contains three main strands, namely:
• LIFE+ Nature & Biodiversity
• LIFE+ Environmental Policy and Governance
• LIFE+ Information & Communication
BirdLife Malta has previously managed two EU LIFE projects – the EU LIFE Yelkouan Shearwater project and the EU LIFE+ Project on Bird Migration and Trapping.
The EU LIFE Yelkouan Shearwater project aims to study and protect the Yelkouan Shearwater at their largest colony on the Maltese islands. With an estimated 10% of the world population breeding in the Maltese Islands, the Maltese archipelago is a very important place for these shy seabirds.
The other project on Bird Trapping and Migrations deals with the problem of trapping for finches, which has been a practice in Malta for many years. However, bird trapping is not permitted under the EU Birds Directives, so when Malta joined the EU a five-year phasing out period for the trapping of seven finch species was negotiated. This period ended in December 2008 and finch trapping season has not opened since then. By spreading information on the conservation concerns and legal status of trapping, the EU LIFE+ Project on Bird Migration and Trapping aims to facilitate the full implementation of the Birds Directive with respect to bird trapping
Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik said: “Today, as we mark their 20th anniversary, we can be proud of the EU’s nature protection laws which help us appreciate and take care of our rich natural heritage biodiversity is our life insurance, and Natura 2000, which protects the areas of highest biodiversity value, is its cornerstone. We have made great progress in the past two decades, and there is much to celebrate, but nature still needs our help, and it will pay us back many times over with the vital ecosystem services it provides.”
Mauro Miceli is Executive
(EU Policy & Legislation), Meusac