At 4:30 on Thursday morning, EU institutions reached a provisional agreement on the long-awaited, and first-ever, EU legislative framework for soils: the Soil Monitoring Law. However, the deal falls short of what’s urgently needed, environmental NGOs warn.
The deal reached by the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission is an important milestone towards finally having an EU legal framework on soils. But policymakers have failed to seize the opportunity to properly address soil degradation, instead watering down a text that already lacked substance. Originally envisioned as a framework to bring EU soils back to health, NGOs are alarmed to see that it has been further stripped of core measures and obligations.
While the fact that a deal was reached is welcome, NGOs are concerned by:
- The weak overall ambition and the lack of legally binding targets and soil health plans.
- The scrapping of key measures on sustainable soil management. By not requiring Member States to identify and implement sustainable soil management practices, and by removing common principles of soil management, the law fails to set a pathway toward a real improvement of soil health.
- The downgrading of efforts to reduce land take (the harmful conversion of agricultural or natural areas into artificial surfaces) to voluntary measures. In addition the scope has been reduced to soil sealing and destruction only, which hinders progress towards reaching the Soil Strategy’s objective of no net land take by 2050.
- The introduction of excessive flexibilities in the soil health monitoring and assessment framework (the core of this law), risking a harmonised assessment of overall soil health in Europe. For example, the framework’s monitoring requirements for soil biodiversity and soil pollution are inadequate.
Caroline Heinzel, Policy Officer for Soil at the European Environmental Bureau, said: “It’s encouraging that, despite disinformation campaigns, decision makers reached a historic agreement, the result however is highly disappointing. Europe’s first-ever soil law will merely act to monitor continued soil degradation rather than reverse it, a concerning conclusion for farmer livelihoods, nature, and climate.”
Kristine De Schamphelaere, Policy Officer for Agriculture at PAN Europe, said: “Pesticides are detrimental to soil biodiversity. Our soils are run into the ground and deprived of life, while healthy soils are the foundation of healthy ecosystems and food production. Farmers need a long-term perspective with living soils as the basis. Pesticides and other soil pollutants should not only be thoroughly monitored, but urgently and ambitiously reduced. Given the grave state of our soils, the absence of ambition in the deal is appalling.”
Martina Forbicini, Programme Officer at ECOS - Environmental Coalition on Standards, said: “Soil is the foundation of all life on earth, so it's encouraging to finally see EU rules on this critical — yet critically neglected — natural resource. However, we're disappointed that actionable tools and obligations to improve soil health are missing. There’s still a slim chance this law could make a difference, but unfortunately when monitoring is prioritised above action nothing is guaranteed. Implementation and enforcement will be crucial — and both must happen quickly and thoroughly to protect soils for future generations.”
The agreement reached must now be rubber stamped by the Member States, as well as the EU Parliament’s Environment committee and plenary later this year. NGOs call on Member States and the EU Parliament to approve the agreement without delay, so that the EU can be one step closer to tackling the triple climate, pollution and nature crisis.
Notes for editors:
The call for an ambitious EU Soil Law received support by a wide range of stakeholders (see open letter signed by 250+ farmers, scientists, civil society organisations, foundations and private sector actors; see business statement).
Contacts
- Caroline Heinzel, caroline.heinzel [at] eeb.org
- Kristine De Schamphelaere, kristine [at] pan-europe.info, 0032 473 96 11 20
- Martina Forbicini, maria.forbicini [at] ecostandard.org
