site.btaBulgaria Votes in Favour of EU Nature Restoration Regulation, Will Seek Optimum Balance

At an EU Environment Council meeting here on Tuesday, Bulgaria voted in favour of a Commission Proposal for a Regulation on nature restoration, the Environment and Water Ministry said in a press release.

Environment and Water Minister Julian Popov, who represented Bulgaria at the meeting, said that the proposal from the Swedish Presidency of the EU Council achieves an optimal balance between keeping the ambitious nature restoration targets and allowing Member States flexibility in implementing the Regulation.

"Bulgaria possesses a very rich and conserved biodiversity and is among Member States with the largest share of its territory included in the Natura 2000 network," Popov pointed out. "This is both a privilege and a challenge. We attach paramount importance to the Regulation providing sufficient flexibility and references accommodating the separate Member States' national and regional specificities," he added.

The proposal aims to restore ecosystems, habitats and species across the EU's land and sea areas. It asks Member States to set restoration measures that cover at least 20% of the EU's land and sea areas by 2030, and ultimately all ecosystems in need of restoration by 2050.

The proposal was approved by a majority vote, as Finland, Sweden, Poland, the Netherlands and Italy voted against, and Belgium and Austria abstained.

In the debate on a proposal for a regulation on CO2 emission standards for new heavy-duty vehicles, Bulgarian voiced support for the initiative to cut CO2 emissions on a global scale, especially in road transport, which is the principal source of high-level CO2 emissions.

Popov pointed out that, even though Bulgaria has concerns over the proposed regulation, efforts will seek to achieve an optimal balance between climate targets and sustained competitiveness, with an emphasis on transport infrastructure and setting up "green corridors" in Europe.