The WWF welcomes the outcome of the European Parliament’s vote on the own-initiative report on the Mid-term Review of the EU Biodiversity Strategy, Europe’s strategy to halt biodiversity loss by 2020. The vote which received support from nearly all Members of the European Parliament highlights the importance of the Birds and Habitats Directives and the need to fully implement them.

In its report the European Parliament opposes a possible revision of the EU Birds and Habitats Directives, arguing that “it would result in weakened legislative protection and financing, and would be bad for nature, for people and for business”. The Directives are also considered sufficiently flexible to ensure that economic development and nature protection go hand in hand.

That’s also great news for the planned 5-country Transboundary Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava-Danube (TBR MDD), where large areas are protected under Natura 2000.

In line with the position of WWF, other NGOs and EU governments, the Parliament now calls for more appropriate conservation and management measures, and sufficient financing and coherence with other EU policies, such as agriculture and energy to achieve the recovery of species and habitats by 2020.