Verbatim report of proceedings

Monday, 7 June 2021 - Strasbourg

EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030: Bringing nature back into our lives (debate)

  Michal Wiezik (PPE). – Mr President, dear colleagues, from our position we usually try to strengthen cooperation and assume competence at EU level in areas where it brings added value. There is an area where we lack, where we are left to think that the EU has no role to speak and legislate on: the forest-related policies.

Amendments tabled to the report are asking for protection, the restoration of ecosystems – but not the forest ecosystems. We should not worry, because there are forestry experts who for centuries protect forest ecosystems and their biodiversity, miraculously integrating conflicting activities.

In reality, however, we are losing forest biodiversity. We are transforming natural forests into fragile plantations, and we even dare to harvest wood in Europe’s last primary and old growth forests, claiming that strict protection of less 3% of European forests is too much. Impact of such claims are detrimental.

Dear colleagues, please vote in favour of the original paragraphs of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) report for the sake of forests and biodiversity.