According to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the EU Commission’s plans to relax environmental regulations for European farmers have not yet received a majority among the member states.
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“The voting result is the receipt for the commission’s current zigzag course,” said department head Cem Özdemir. “Panic has never been a good advisor, especially not where companies rely on long-term planning security.”
The Commission presented an initial proposal for easing restrictions a good week ago. On Wednesday, the EU Commission surprisingly presented a new draft for voting, the ministry said. This back and forth comes at the expense of planning security – but that is what farmers urgently need. Germany was therefore also unable to agree to the proposal. If a sufficient majority of the EU states in the responsible committee do not vote for or against the project, the EU Commission can bring the exceptions into force independently.
It is planned that the requirement to leave four percent of arable land lying fallow or used unproductively will be suspended retroactively to January 1st. This is actually intended to protect the environment so that soils can recover. The prerequisite for the exception is that farmers, in return, grow nitrogen-fixing plants such as lentils or peas or catch crops on four percent of their arable land. The Commission’s first proposal last week mentioned seven percent.
Environmental associations accused the EU Commission of sacrificing environmental standards and accepting “enormous ecological damage”. Areas for biodiversity are a necessity for the preservation of intact agricultural ecosystems, according to a statement from several environmental organizations such as BUND and WWF.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240209-99-933583/3
According to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the EU Commission’s plans to relax environmental regulations for European farmers have not yet received a majority among the member states.
“The voting result is the receipt for the commission’s current zigzag course,” said department head Cem Özdemir. “Panic has never been a good advisor, especially not where companies rely on long-term planning security.”
The Commission presented an initial proposal for easing restrictions a good week ago. On Wednesday, the EU Commission surprisingly presented a new draft for voting, the ministry said. This back and forth comes at the expense of planning security – but that is what farmers urgently need. Germany was therefore also unable to agree to the proposal. If a sufficient majority of the EU states in the responsible committee do not vote for or against the project, the EU Commission can bring the exceptions into force independently.
2024-02-09 18:12:16
#Agriculture #majority #proposal #exception #environmental #rule
