On July 25, 2024, at a joint meeting of the Maritime Economy and Inland Navigation Committee, the Committee on Environmental Protection, Natural Resources and Forestry and the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development – at the request of a group of MPs , the government's information on the effects on Poland and the planned activities of individual ministries in connection with the adoption of by the Council of the European Union regulation on the restoration of natural resources.
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Restoration of drained peat bogs is to be voluntary
The information was presented by: Secretary of State at the Ministry of Climate and Environment, Ms. Urszula Sara Zielińska, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Jacek Czerniak, and Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Mr. Przemysław Koperski.
June 17 this year The Council of the European Union formally adopted the regulation on the restoration of natural resources. This act provides for the introduction of nature restoration measures to cover all ecosystems requiring restoration by 2050, setting out specific legally binding goals and obligations in each of the ecosystems listed therein. The regulation requires Member States to establish and implement measures by 2030 that will collectively restore nature on at least 20% of the EU's land and sea areas.
The MPs asked to present the conducted analyzes and expert opinions, diagnosed risks and threats, a schedule of planned activities and an indication of the costs calculated for Poland of implementing the provisions of the regulation, along with the sources of financing.
A National Plan for the Reconstruction of Natural Resources will be created
According to the information provided by the representative of the Ministry of Climate and Environment, each Member State is preparing a national plan for the reconstruction of natural resources and will submit it to the European Commission within 24 months of the entry into force of the regulation, and will carry out monitoring and preparatory studies needed to determine the reconstruction measures necessary to achieve the reconstruction and implementation objectives. commitments and contribution to achieving the EU's overarching and specific objectives. It was emphasized that the National Plan for the Reconstruction of Natural Resources is an important strategic document, requiring – due to its wide scope of impact and ambitious goals – the establishment of an inter-ministerial team supported by research institutes and units subordinated to and supervised by the Ministry of Climate and Environment, as well as requiring the involvement of appropriate financial resources. .
The main challenges facing the ministry related to the implementation of the KPO will include: selecting a contractor for the document or creating a consortium led by a selected scientific and research unit, as well as planning sources of financing and securing funds for the preparation of the document. In Poland, no estimate of the costs of achieving the objectives set out in the regulation has been carried out so far . Such estimates will be possible only after determining the scope of activities and obligations in the National Plan for the Reconstruction of Natural Resources, based on data obtained, among others, from the ministries of the environment, agriculture and infrastructure, as well as scientific centers and institutes. According to the European Commission, possible short-term costs related to loss of income that may be incurred by certain social groups, such as farmers, forest owners or fishermen, can be partially or fully covered by EU funds and other sources. To date, the European Commission has not indicated which specific funds this would be used for and has not provided separate, new funds for the implementation of activities resulting from the implementation of the regulation.
Farmers will have problems
According to the information provided by a representative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regulation is characterized by a relatively high level of ambition regarding agriculture, which is difficult to achieve in a short time. Therefore, at the meeting of the EU Council on June 17 this year, Poland voted against the adoption of the regulation. In the opinion of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the implementation of the objectives regarding the reconstruction of agricultural ecosystems by irrigating drained peat bogs or increasing the percentage of landscape elements on agricultural land is associated with the need to re-profile existing agricultural activities and results in a reduction in agricultural production. In addition, the possibility of implementing indicators regarding increasing the population of birds and butterflies in rural areas also raises serious concerns, because despite taking protective measures, achieving appropriate growth levels will be unrealistic due to unpredictable weather conditions and climate change. Farmers are particularly concerned about the implementation of the goal regarding the allocation of drained peat bogs. Scientific data show that there are approximately 1 million hectares of drained peat bogs in Poland that are currently used for agriculture.
This means that Poland should take action to restore organic soils used in agriculture that are drained peat bogs in:
- 300 thousand ha by 2023, of which at least 75 thousand ha is to be re-irrigated;
- 400 thousand ha by 2040, of which at least 133 thousand ha is to be re-irrigated;
- 500 thousand ha by 2050, of which at least 166 thousand ha is to be re-irrigated.
Taking into account the average area of agricultural farms in Poland (approx. 11.42 ha), voluntary irrigation activities for farmers would concern:
- 6.6 thousand farms by 2023;
- 11.6 thousand farms by 2040;
- 14.6 thousand farms by 2050
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The biggest challenge is improving the condition of rivers
Within the scope of competences of the Ministry of Infrastructure, information was presented which shows that the greatest challenge is to improve the condition of rivers in Poland, including the classification of the river as free-flowing. In the opinion of the Ministry of Infrastructure, the presented classification of biological elements in the Water Framework Directive recommends taking into account a number of different aspects, which means that a surface water body which, despite significant physical modifications, provides sufficient ecosystem functions for the species occurring in it and meets the appropriate physicochemical criteria, can achieve good ecological status. At the same time, the proposed definition of a free-flowing river significantly increases the importance of hydromorphological elements, while largely omitting biological criteria.
In the opinion of the Ministry of Infrastructure, in order to implement the regulation, it would be necessary to first prepare an inventory of existing barriers disturbing the biological continuity of rivers, and after preparing the inventory, analyze the justification for their preservation, demolition or reconstruction. The analysis should also take into account the investment procedure related to the elimination of barriers. The selection of possible river sections for restoration should include only those that are economically justified and will not result in the loss of the ability of watercourses to perform their current functions, such as flood protection, water supply to the population or hydropower.
Source: KRIR
