Christine Schneider, responded to the letter by stating that while her party supported the EU’s green agenda, it had particular reservations regarding the nature law’s effects.
More than 3,000 scientists wrote on Tuesday in support of the proposal in response to claims made by center-right lawmakers that the EU’s flagship bill to restore nature will harm farmers and jeopardise food security. They said there is no scientific basis for these claims.
The European Union bill, which aims to restore damaged environments on 20% of Europe’s land and sea by 2030, has been called for rejection by the center-right European People’s Party, the largest legislator group in the European Union Parliament.
The EPP was not mentioned in the scientists’ letter, which instead addressed the group’s assertions that the law would reduce food production in Europe and jeopardise food security.
The letter stated that “those claims not only lack scientific evidence but even contradict it.”
The majority of the 3,339 signatories are environmental scientists, and they are affiliated with organisations like the universities of Athens, Bucharest, Delft, Helsinki, Oxford, and Zurich.
The destruction of nature and climate change, according to scientists, are the two biggest threats to food security. To maintain sustainable food production, action must be taken to restore nature and reduce the use of agricultural chemicals.
Food waste and the availability of inexpensive, wholesome food are two factors that have an impact on food security. The letter highlights scientific evaluations from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity, which is supported by the U.N. Guy Pe’er, a scientist at the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research and the Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research in Germany, thinks that decision-makers should act decisively to combat false information and fake news.
Christine Schneider, an EPP lawmaker, responded to the letter by stating that while her party supported the EU’s green agenda, it had particular reservations regarding the nature law’s effects.
According to studies and analyses, the Commission’s proposal will result in a decrease in food production, Schneider said.
When asked to cite studies that supported the EPP’s assertions, a spokesperson for the organisation shared research that included a study that appeared in the academic journal EuroChoices.
However, it also made it clear that this trend alone did not take into account how declining biodiversity affects food production or how halting the loss of natural habitat can increase agricultural output. That study claimed that reducing the use of land and pesticides would lower agricultural output.
The first of two closely contested votes on the nature bill is scheduled for Thursday in the EU Parliament. EU member states must also ratify the legislation.