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No real progress made on protecting 30% of  land and sea for nature by 2030 and deregulatory plans risk sliding backwards, warn experts

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Originally published at Wildlife and Countryside Link

  • The Government is not on course to protect 30% of the land and sea for nature by 2030.
  • Just 3.22% of England’s land and 8% of the sea was effectively protected by 2022. This is an increase of just 0.22% of the land and 4% of the sea compared with 2021.
  • Deregulatory proposals to liberalise planning laws would take England even further away from meeting nature targets.
  • The report comes just weeks ahead of global nature talks where the UK is expected to sign an international treaty to implement 30×30.

In 2020, the Government committed to protect at least 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030 (its 30×30 target). Two years on, nature campaigners are warning that little progress has been made.

In its first annual 30×30 progress report, Wildlife and Countryside Link is calling on the Prime Minister to send a clear international message that the UK will be a global leader in implementing 30×30. The 30×30 target is expected to be a key commitment in global nature talks at COP15 in Montreal in December.

The report argues that this means “designation, not deregulation” – protecting more land and sea for nature, rather than weakening planning rules. The report singles out the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill for criticism. The bill will reform or repeal hundreds of EU-derived environmental laws by the end of 2023. In particular, plans for “fundamental reform” of the Habitats Regulations could weaken the UK’s most legally-robust laws that defend natural habitats.

Campaigners are also calling on the Prime Minister to confirm her intention to attend COP15 nature talks in person to push for global action to protect and restore nature.

 

Key figures detailed in the report:

  • Only 3.22% of England’s land is effectively protected for nature.
  • The Government has designated 2831 hectares in three new Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), contributing 0.22% to the amount of protected land.
  • A maximum of 8% of England’s seas could be said to be effectively protected for nature.
  • The progression of management measures in some Marine Protected Areas has increased the amount of ocean by 4% at most. 

The report will be launched at an event in Parliament this morning (19.10.22) with speakers including:

  • Daniel Zeichner MP and Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
  • Beccy Speight, CEO, RSPB
  • Craig Bennett, chief executive, The Wildlife Trusts
  • Richard Benwell, CEO, Wildlife and Countryside Link

Separate analysis has found that at least 90% of UK marine areas with protections in place were damaged by bottom trawling or dredging during 2021. On land, widespread burning on England’s protected peatlands in 2022 has been damaging our biggest carbon store, with 51 burns on land protected by multiple conservation designations and public reports of burning up 67% from 2021.

This lack of progress, coupled with a Government deregulatory agenda  is putting the UK at risk of moving even further away from where it needs to be to protect and restore nature.

Dr Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link, said:

“30×30 is a brilliant environmental promise and the Government still has a chance to set an international lead in restoring nature. Unfortunately, our figures show that in the race to halt nature’s decline by 2030, the Government is limping backwards. At this rate, the Government’s prospects of effectively protecting 30% of the land and sea for nature by 2030 are vanishing.

“If deregulatory plans set out in the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill go ahead unchanged, and if the current review of farming policy interrupts the transition to greener agriculture, then any hope of meeting the 2030 target could be dashed.

“Fortunately, there is still time to succeed and the actions needed are set out in our report. The Government’s own reviews have recommended strengthening the rules for restoring nature in National Parks and AONBs and proposed a network of Highly Protected Marine Areas at sea. Instead of chasing after imaginary end-of-rainbow rewards of deregulation, the Government should implement these reviews to get back on track for 30×30.

 

Craig Bennett, chief executive of The Wildlife Trusts, said:

“Nature will not recover without protecting at least 30% of land and sea by 2030. The Government has committed to that target, but this report shows an alarming lack of progress. Pursuing a dangerous agenda of deregulation and weakening support for nature-friendly farming will make the path to 30 by 30 even harder, threatening our soil health and pollinators, undermining our food security, and wiping out vulnerable species like hedgehogs and turtle doves.

“We need policies that help to restore nature – as fast as possible – not make things worse. That means strong laws and investment in cleaner rivers, recreating wetlands and wildflower meadows, and boosting vanishing insect populations – before it’s too late.”

 

Beccy Speight, chief executive of the RSPB said

 “England is one of most nature-depleted countries on earth, but in a welcomed and bold move, the UK Government committed to protecting 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030. However, two years on from this commitment, and with just eight to go, there has been next to no progress on the condition or extent of our protected areas, the places our wildlife needs and people value most. In fact, recent events would indicate that the UK Government may be actually dismantling the fundamental building blocks needed to achieve this target by proposing plans to scrap the laws that protect nature, and funding for nature friendly farmers.”

The 30×30 progress report sets out the specific progress that has been made by Government in protecting land and sea for nature in England as well as setting the areas of most concern. Commitments for ocean protection including designation of Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) are welcome. However, just 0.53% of English waters have been designated as HPMAs, against a target of 10%.  Progress has been made when it comes to protection in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) but this remains slow, with just four offshore MPAs protected fully or partially against damage caused by bottom trawling and dredging against a commitment to protect 40 sites by 2024. 

 

Turning to protection of land, the report praises the designation of new Sites of Special Scientific Interest but notes that these have only added 0.22% to the amount of land protected for nature.  Campaigners also highlight the lack of sufficient statutory funding and action to improve the condition of all protected nature sites and lack of progress in coming forward with specific proposals on how other site protection and conservation tools such as Local Wildlife Sites, and Wildbelt can be strengthened to meet the grade to count towards 30×30.

 

The report concludes that Government can make significant progress in the next year towards achieving 30×30 by:

  1. Bringing existing terrestrial protected sites into good condition by implementing and investing in management measures and regular monitoring, with a target to have at least 75% of SSSIs in favourable condition by 2042. The current figure is 40%.
  2. Extending the protected sites network on land with an action plan for completing the protected sites network.
  3. Boosting nature in National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty by strengthening provisions for nature and providing greater resources to support nature’s recovery in these protected landscapes.
  4. Delivering the initial five Highly Protected Marine Area pilot sites and designating further HPMA sites to contribute to achieving at least 10% of England’s seas in HMPAs by 2030.
  5. Implementing improved management of marine protected areas by implementing bans on damaging practices including bottom trawling within them.
  6. Retaining and strengthening the Habitats Regulations, which provide the strongest protections for our most significant and vulnerable sites and species.

Nature Positive Scotland

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We are facing a nature and climate emergency.

The signs are all around us.

It’s clearer than ever the climate is in crisis with temperatures in Scotland reaching record highs again last week – the UK’s 10 warmest years since 1884 have been in the last two decades – and wildfires in England, Spain, France, Portugal, Greece, California and even Alaska. 

And the same is true for nature. This year, avian influenza has killed tens of thousands of seabirds across Scotland and pushed a number of species into severe decline. But many of Scotland’s seabirds (and other wildlife) were already in severe trouble due to other pressures caused by human activity.  

Globally, nature is being lost faster than ever. In Scotland, historical nature loss means we live in one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world and we are still losing nature now: since 1970 half of Scotland’s species have declined and 1 in 9 is currently estimated to be at risk of national extinction. 

Solving the twin nature and climate crisis requires twin goals: Net Zero and Nature Positive.

A Nature Positive Scotland by 2030, adapted from the Global Goal for Nature. For more information please visit https://www.naturepositive.org/

 

A Nature Positive Scotland is one where by 2030 there is more nature than there is today, and by 2045 Scotland’s nature is well on its way to full recovery.

Net Zero and Nature Positive can and must be achieved together: restoring nature can be a huge part of the climate solution, as restoring habitats like peatlands, native woodlands, saltmarsh and our oceans to a healthy state will help lock up carbon, as well as helping wildlife to thrive.

But we also need action to help species, the building blocks of ecosystems, which are in peril.

The challenges nature faces are too big for individual action alone to solve. All parts of government, the economy and society must work together to protect and restore nature.

Right now, the Scottish Government is consulting on its new Biodiversity Strategy which should define how Scotland will respond to the global nature crisis here at home from now until 2045. It’s a key opportunity for the Scottish Government to make good on their ambitious words and show they are taking action for nature.    

The consultation is also an excellent opportunity for us to use our voices and come together to ask, or perhaps demand, that they take the action that is needed.  

Until 12 September, you can take part in the consultation directly at www.gov.scot/publications/scotlands-biodiversity-strategy-consultation. There are 40 questions you can respond to. If this sounds like a lot, don’t worry, the RSPB will write a future blog about feedback which you might find helpful.

You can also take part in the e-action to send a letter to the consultation team and Lorna Slater, the Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity. The letter sets out the key changes we think are needed (read more below) and is editable for you to add your own thoughts. Click here to send yours. 

We think the draft strategy is a start but doesn’t yet match the scale of the challenge. To do that, we believe some key changes are needed.

Credit- Flow Country: Andy Hay

 

We believe the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy should have three things at its heart:

Species recovery – Species are the building blocks of our natural environment, but nearly half our species have declined since 1970. We need the Strategy to include a national programme of species recovery that reverses this loss of wildlife and allows species such as puffins, beavers, oak trees, bumblebees, butterflies and toads to thrive.

 

Ecosystem regeneration –too many of our rivers, mountains, native forests, lochs, coasts and seas are degraded. We need the Strategy to include a national programme to restore these wild places with our most important nature sites protected and nurtured, and wider nature networks to be created so nature thrives everywhere.

 

Targets – There’s not much point of a strategy that doesn’t set clear goals that are meaningful and measurable. We need the Strategy to set ambitious, specific targets that will drive nature’s recovery by 2045. And we need them to be legally binding.

 

We’re expecting the outcome to be published in autumn and hopefully by then we will have a strategy that will mean no more loss of nature by 2030 and set us on the path to nature’s recovery by 2045 in Scotland.

 

Nature is in crisis. Together we can save it, but we must act now!

 

 

Regulation to prevent continued PFAS pollution in the UK environment

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**You can read the entirety of the information on this campaign here.**

 

There is now clear and unequivocal evidence that demonstrates global contamination of the environment, wildlife and human populations by per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances, PFAS.

  • Widespread PFAS-use has created an irreversible toxic legacy of global contamination.
  • PFAS are accumulating in our bodies and those of our children.
  • PFAS exposure poses an immediate threat to human health.
  • PFAS pollution is fuelling the biodiversity crisis.
  • PFAS pollution is a threat to UK drinking water.
  • PFAS in products create a barrier to the circular economy and a waste problem yet to be solved.
  • PFAS-free solutions already exist, yet PFAS continue to be added unnecessarily to many consumer products.
  • With the planetary boundary for chemical pollution already largely exceeded, there is no time to wait!

 

The undersigned organisations therefore call on the UK Government to:

1. Restrict the production and use of ALL PFAS as one group by 2025, with the following recommendations and exemptions:

a. Take immediate action to phase-out PFAS where suitable alternatives are already in regular use across the UK market (e.g. in food packaging).

b. Take immediate action to prevent products containing high levels of PFAS being marketed as ‘compostable’.

c. Grant time-limited exemptions (with caveats, see points 2a-c below) where the continued use of PFAS is proven to be essential for the health, safety or functioning of society, AND where no suitable alternative currently exists.

2. Where an exemption for continued use is granted the following conditions must apply:

a. Stringent risk-management requirements must be in place to ensure zero-emission to the environment at all stages of the life-cycle.

b. Regular reassessment should be carried out to ensure the conditions of the exemption remain valid.

c. Exemptions should be time-limited, ensuring a full phase-out by 2035.

3. Ensure sufficient funding and support is available to drive research and innovation towards safe and sustainable PFAS alternatives.

4. Submit a proposal to the Stockholm Convention for global elimination of ALL PFAS.

 

Chemical pollution has passed the safe limit for humanity, and with scientists urging immediate action to reduce the production and release of novel entities it is vital that we do not delay measures to address the growing and persistent problem of PFAS.

 

Widespread PFAS-use has created an irreversible toxic legacy of global contamination

Despite no natural sources and only ~60 years since their first commercial use, the extreme persistence, mobility and widespread use of PFAS has resulted in global contamination of water, air, soils, wildlife and human populations. PFAS and their precursors are now found in drinking water across Europe[i] and the US[ii], are ubiquitous in UK freshwater[iii], and are accumulating in the marine environment[iv]. PFAS contaminate soils and crops and bioaccumulate along food chains1, with some showing half lives in the environment of over 1000 years[v]. They contaminate air and dust and through long-range atmospheric transport reach even the most remote regions of the globe, from high altitudes to both poles[vi], [vii], [viii]. With current analytical methodologies restricted to a minority of PFAS, and fewer still being actively monitored, our current understanding of environmental contamination represents only the tip of the iceberg[ix]. Continuing to condone this widespread degradation of natural resources risks devastating consequences for future generations.

 

PFAS pollution is fuelling the biodiversity crisis

Anthropogenic chemical pollution is acknowledged as one of the main, yet underestimated, drivers of the biodiversity crisis[xxiv]. Due to the extreme environmental persistence of PFAS (some PFAS have half-lives of over 1000 years), and their continued and widespread use across modern society, PFAS represent a major and increasing burden on wildlife. This both directly impacts population survival and reduces resilience to other stressors such as climate change and habitat loss.

PFAS are highly mobile in the environment with research showing the ability of some to both bioaccumulate and biomagnify. As such, PFAS are now detected in numerous species across the UK, from freshwater fish and terrestrial birds, to top predators such as otters, seabirds and marine mammals[xxv], [xxvi], [xxvii]. Recent research also points to the impact PFAS can have on key species such as pollinators, risking knock-on implications across UK agriculture and food production. For example:

  • In marine mammals, PFAS exposure has been linked to impacts on immune, blood, liver and kidney function in bottlenose dolphins, immune function in sea otters and has even been linked to neurological impacts in polar bears[xxviii].
  • In marine birds, higher levels of PFAS are correlated with disruption of the thyroid hormone and poorer body conditions[xxix].
  • In fish, PFAS have been shown to disrupt reproduction, thyroid activity, metabolism and development[xxx].
  • Exposure of bee colonies to PFOS has been shown to increase mortality and affect colony activity, with PFOS bioaccumulating in bee tissues[xxxi].

The threat of persistent chemicals is not new. Legacy contaminants such as PCBs continue to threaten UK wildlife decades after restrictions were first introduced[xxxii]. It is therefore vital that we act with urgency to stem all unnecessary sources of these persistent pollutants if we are to learn from past mistakes, protect wildlife and safeguard the resilience of our natural environment for future generations.

 

To add your support, along with Froglife and the below organisations, please send your organisational logo to info@fidra.org.uk

 

“Don’t deregulate, designate” – say nature charities calling for bigger and better protected sites for wildlife.

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In its response to Government plans to restore nature (the Nature Recovery Green Paper), Wildlife and Countryside Link praised some proposed improvements to the legal rules for nature conservation, including new strategies for improving important wildlife sites, new sites for nature’s recovery, and more adaptability to respond to climate change.

However, the coalition of 65 charities, including Froglife, has warned that all of the positives could be outweighed by risks if the Government presses ahead with proposals to re-write the rulebook for protecting habitats and species, which was established in the EU, but originally conceived in the UK.



Nature groups say that the Government’s Green Paper is wrong to suggest that the Habitats Regulations are too focused on legal process. Assessments of harm to nature under the Regulations are the last and best line of defence for many of the UK’s most valuable habitats against damaging development and unsustainable land use. Stripping away legal accountability and case law would increase costs, create legal uncertainty, and expose many of our finest wildlife sites to greater harm.

The environmental group is also calling for more important habitats such as ancient woodlands and meadows to be designated as protected nature sites, and for such sites to be given stronger protection.


Dr Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link, said:

“The way we protect wildlife can certainly be improved. We are pleased to see proposals for statutory strategies to manage wildlife sites better and to make them more flexible in the face of climate change. The idea of protecting degraded habitats to allow nature to recover is excellent. The Government should press ahead in delivering these changes.

“But these positives would be outweighed by the damage that could be done if the Government were to weaken the Habitats Regulations. These rules are not just added red tape standing in the way of good decision-making, as the Government seems to suggest. They are critical laws for nature, providing certainty for businesses, and essential legal protection for communities and wildlife. The idea of simplifying the rules and stripping away case law for a “blank slate” may sound attractive from a business point of view, but it is a false promise that would likely lead to increased costs and uncertainty.

“If the Government is serious about ensuring that protected sites play their part in halting nature’s decline, the conclusion is clear. The Government should designate, not deregulate. It should protect more places for nature, strengthen their legal defences, and invest in better management to revive the 60% of sites that aren’t in good condition.”



Wildlife and Countryside Link’s main asks of the Nature Recovery Green Paper:

  1. More protected nature sites, that have greater protection, with a faster process for completing the protected site network.
  2. Retaining and extending site protection rules, including Habitats Regulations Assessment, to defend protected sites from a wider range of damaging projects and activities.
  3. Ministerial designation of Sites of Special Scientific Interest could help protect more sites, but must only be in addition to the legal duty to designate sites of scientific importance.
  4. The objective of achieving Favourable Conservation Status should be established in law as a guiding principle for species and habitat conservation.
  5. Setting nature’s recovery and climate targets as statutory purposes for all existing public bodies, including the Forestry Commission, RPA and MMO.
  6. To contribute towards the target of protecting 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030, areas must be protected and well-managed for nature. There should be a new Nature recovery planning designation, with areas identified through Local Nature Recovery Strategies.

 

You can read the full response here. 

Call for a strong Circular Economy Bill for Scotland.

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Read ScotLINK’s full paper here. 

 

Research shows global consumption of natural resources has tripled since the 1970s and is set to further double by 2060, and 90% of biodiversity loss is caused by resource extraction and processing. Material flow accounts for Scotland, published in 2021, show our material footprint to be more than double sustainable levels and carbon footprint data shows that 82% of Scotland’s carbon footprint is derived from emissions embedded in goods we consume. Addressing the quantity of raw materials used in our economy is therefore key in meeting climate and biodiversity goals.

The best way to reduce the quantity of raw materials that we use is to make our economy more circular, with repairable products designed to last as long as possible; made of materials that can be safely reused or recycled. Such an economy should be regenerative, replenishing natural systems through returning biological materials as composts to the soil and restoring and nurturing biodiversity. Scotland has a Circular Economy Strategy, Making Things Last, and there has been some valuable work, for example, in supporting innovative enterprises and banning some single use plastics. It is encouraging to see circular economy principles increasingly embedded in other policy areas such as the draft National Planning Framework. However, overall progress in converting the high-level commitments into on-the-ground reality has been slow with, for example, missed household recycling targets.

Our climate and nature emergencies demand systemic change across our economy to really address the impact from the way we make and use products. Such systemic change needs to be driven by targets to focus minds – in all areas of the economy – on reducing our use of raw materials. In the same way that our climate change targets are driving policy to decarbonise energy and heat production, a material footprint target could drive policy to ‘circularise’ our economy. The Scottish Government has committed to bring forward a Circular Economy Bill in the current parliamentary term. This bill must establish a shared vision, set ambitious targets and a framework for implementation. We urge the Scottish Government to bring forward a bold bill to do this, which will galvanise action in all sectors of the economy.

PAN UK: Pesticide-Free London Campaign

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There is a growing groundswell of support for a pesticide-free London among the capital’s decision-makers and residents.

One-third of London’s 32 Boroughs have already phased out, or significantly reduced, their use of pesticides while others have commitments in place to take action. London is already one of the greenest cities in the world and the first to be designated a National Park City.

Right now, there is an unprecedented window of opportunity to make the whole of London pesticide-free. By phasing out unnecessary pesticide use, we can make the city greener and support urban biodiversity, as well as the health of those who live, work, study and play in the capital. It’s high time that London followed the example of other major cities like Paris, Toronto and New York by banning pesticides from public spaces.

A pesticide-free London is in our sights and by working together we can secure a healthier and more sustainable future for both people and wildlife.

PAN UK sent Freedom of Information requests to all thirty-two London borough councils in September and October 2021. Thirty-one councils responded (all but Ealing Council). Read a summary of their findings here and find out about the pesticides being used in your borough by clicking on the map on PAN UK’s campaign page here. 

 

What can you do to help?

There are lots of ways to make a difference in your borough which you can adapt depending on the amount of time you have available. There are tonnes of resources and ideas on PAN UK’s campaign page here.