Catch up on the main nature policy news from March
In a nutshell: Astrid Schomaker appointed CBD’s new Executive Secretary / Nature policies face setback in European Council / Negotiations for deep-sea mining regulations / Brazil publishes strategic environmental plan / Global Biodiversity Fund approves first grants / UNEA-6 adopts 15 resolutions
Astrid Schomaker appointed Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity
The Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) has announced its new Executive Secretary: Astrid Schomaker, from Germany. Following consultation with the Bureau of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD, UN Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Ms. Schomaker.
Since 2017, she has been the Director for Global Sustainable Development and for Green Diplomacy and Multilateralism at the European Commission's Environment Department.
Schomaker has overseen implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as well as the integration of biodiversity and pollution into engagement with various stakeholders. Since 2015, she has also been co-chair of the steering committee of the United Nations Environment Programme's (UNEP) International Resource Panel.
Nature legislations face setbacks in Europe
One month after the European Parliament approved the Nature Restoration Law (NRL), a landmark deal to restore at least 20% of the EU’s land and sea areas by 2030, the legislation is being in put in jeopardy by the European Council (consisting of EU member states).
Although the Council’s vote at this stage is usually a formality—as the text was already put to a vote previously—last-minute political maneuvers by some of the Member States have cast doubt on the future of the legislation.
The deal no longer has majority support in the Council, as countries including Sweden, Poland, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Italy and Hungary continue to either abstain or oppose the law.
The NRL would contribute to the implementation of Target 2 of The Biodiversity Plan (also known as Global Biodiversity Framework) and is widely supported by citizens, scientists and business and investor networks.
Just one week before the Nature Restoration Law faced this backlash, the Council approved a watered-down version of the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). This legislation aims to prevent corporate abuses of human rights and the environment by strengthening rules for large EU companies as well as large non-EU companies active in the region.
The new draft agreement scaled back in-scope companies by about 66%, now covering only companies with at least 1,000 employees and revenues greater than €450 million in the last financial year. The European Parliament will now vote on the proposal.
International Seabed Authority discusses deep-sea mining regulations
During the first part of the 29th annual session of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), countries failed to reach an agreement on draft regulations for deep-sea mining, a set of rules to regulate prospecting, exploration and potential exploitation of seabed materials.
In February 2024, the ISA released the latest version of its mining regulations text, which covers issues such as the protection and conservation of the marine environment, financial issues around deep-sea mining contracts, enforcement measures and the incorporation of environmental externalities.
Some researchers and conservationists have expressed alarm at this latest draft, since it incorporates proposals that would speed up the process to issue commercial deep-sea mining permits.
Countries part of the ISA Council discussed approximately one-third of this consolidated text. Discussions on several unresolved issues will continue through intersessional working groups. The Council will convene again for the second part of the 29th session in July 2024.
Currently, there’s no consensus amongst countries on opening the deep sea for mining activities and, to date, 25 countries have expressed support for a moratorium. This call has also been supported by scientists, civil society, youth and companies that are demanding a comprehensive scientific understanding and assessment of the risks, impacts and consequences of deep-sea mining.
So far, 47 companies have signed a business statement calling for a moratorium on deep seabed mining activities, and they commit to not source materials from the deep seabed, to exclude these materials from their supply chains, and to not finance deep-sea mining activities. Read and join the business call.
Brazil publishes its strategic environmental plan
In preparation for the climate COP30 in 2025, Brazil released its Strategic Plan for 2023-2027, which outlines institutional actions to achieve the country’s climate and nature agenda by 2030. By COP16, Brazil is expected to publish its NBSAP that would detail these actions. The plan’s working areas include biodiversity protection and recovery, bioeconomy, ensuring environmental quality, climate crisis, and water resources.
Brazil will focus its biodiversity actions on reducing deforestation, recovering forest coverage, increasing protected areas and conserving protected species. These actions will contribute to targets 1 through 4 of The Biodiversity Plan.
The country also aims to work toward nature-positive economic initiatives through the implementation of the National Policy on Bioeconomy, “to promote the development of economies oriented to the sustainable use of biodiversity”.
Global Biodiversity Framework Fund approves first grants
As the UN Biodiversity (CBD) COP16 in October draws closer, one of the key enablers to the implementation of The Biodiversity Plan will be, among others, the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF), under the GEF.
The fund has approved its first four grants of nearly $40 million to support new proposed projects in Brazil, Gabon and Mexico to support the implementation of targets 2, 3, 4, 9, 19, 22, and 23 of The Biodiversity Plan. About half of this funding will support actions by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities as key stakeholders to promote the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of biodiversity.
The CBD hopes these first grant approvals will encourage more donors to contribute to the fund as the objective is for the fund to support the disbursement of $200 billion per year by 2030 to support the objectives of The Biodiversity Plan.
The sixth UN Environment Assembly approves 15 resolutions
The 6th UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) wrapped up at the beginning of March with the adoption of 15 resolutions and the recognition that cooperation and a whole-of-a-society approach are two key enablers for climate and nature action.
The approved resolutions cover harmful pesticides in agriculture, air pollution, land degradation, plastic pollution, water policies, climate change, marine biodiversity loss, increasing cooperation between Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs), and mining. While wide-ranging, some critics argue that most of the resolutions started out weak and were watered down further throughout the negotiations.
Read the February news update to catch up with the previous nature policy stories from around the world.