Activities of Petros KOKKALIS related to 2020/2273(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030: Bringing nature back into our lives
Amendments (33)
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Recalls that agricultural productivity and resilience depend on biodiversity to guarantee the long-term sustainability and resilience of our food systems; underlines, furthermore, that much of the biodiversity across Europe has been created by farming and its survival is dependent on the continued activsustainable management of farmland; underlines, however, the negative impact of intensive agriculture on biodiversity;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Emphasises the strong interconnection between biodiversity loss, climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic; highlights the close links between human, animal and planet health, in the context of increased human - livestock - wildlife contacts and ecosystem degradation;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Notes that biodiversity is a key factor for the achievement of food security and improved nutrition and that all food systems and a broad range of ecosystem services that support agricultural productivity, such as soil fertility, and water quality and supply depend on biodiversity; underlines that at least one-third of the world’s agricultural crops depend upon pollinators; stresses that low-input and ecosystem based approaches to agriculture are particularly adapted to supporting the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity;
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 c (new)
Paragraph 1 c (new)
1c. Emphasises the important role of small farms to biodiversity and landscape preservation; stresses that small farms contribute to biodiversity conservation by applying less intensive and mechanized practices and by using less inputs such as pesticides and fertilizers; underlines, furthermore, that they protect sensitive rural areas (mountainous, disadvantaged, islands, Natura areas) by preserving agriculture and therefore biodiversity;
Amendment 28 #
1d. Emphasises that sustainable agriculture can reduce the negative effects on species, habitats and ecosystems and thus minimise the effects of climate change;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 e (new)
Paragraph 1 e (new)
1e. Calls on the Commission to timely present a proposal for legally binding nature restoration targets; stresses that legally binding restoration targets present a major opportunity for repairing EU’s degraded ecosystems and will be instrumental in the achievement of the objectives of the biodiversity strategy while also contributing to climate change mitigation and adaptation;
Amendment 87 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Emphasises the strong link with the Farm to Fork strategy and the need for a holistic approach to the food system; calls on the Commission to conduct impact assessments and establish an evidence- based evaluation of the implementation of the strategy’s measures and targets, in particular of the individual and cumulative impacts on the social and economic sustainability of agriculture in the EU, food security and prices, and the potential risks of displacing biodiversity losses abroad by the replacement of local agricultural production with imports;
Amendment 113 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Considers that biodiversity conservation is a key societal goal, requiring a broad and inclusive debate, and the effective participation of everyone in society, in particular those more affected by the measures, such as the farming community and especially small and young farmers, while at the same benefiting from their knowledge and experience, and creating a sense of ownership, vital for the successful implementation of the strategy;
Amendment 119 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Stresses that actions taken against biodiversity loss must be underpinned by sound science and that investing in research, innovation, knowledge exchange, raising awareness, education and advisory services will be key to gathering data and finding the best solutions; notes that farmers, especially small, young and women farmers and people who live in disadvantaged rural areas, need bolstered training and advises to implement efficient practices and investments for the conservation and restoration of biodiversity;
Amendment 138 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Stresses the key role of the common agricultural policy (CAP) in protecting and promoting farmland biodiversity; underlines the potential of the green architecture components of the CAP in promoting and providing incentives for the transition to more sustainable and resilient agricultural systems for producing food and maintaining high nature value farmland; considers that Member States must ensure the timely development and uptake of actions which contribute to enhancing the delivery and potential of biodiversity benefits in line with the required level of ambition, according to relevant targets subject to an impact assessment;
Amendment 145 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the new EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and its level of ambition, in order to achieve further nature protection, restoration of degraded ecosystems, addressing the negative effects of intensive agriculture;
Amendment 148 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Calls on the Commission to make immediate use of the possibilities for climate change mitigation and adaptation provided by the restoration of forests, wetlands, peatland, grasslands and coastal ecosystems and to integrate the preservation of nature into all relevant EU policies and programmes;
Amendment 155 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
Amendment 164 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Recalls the conclusions of the IPBES report of 2019, according to which nature is declining at a rate unprecedented in human history and around 1 million species are threatened with extinction; strongly regrets that the Union has neither fully met the 2020 biodiversity strategy objectives nor the global Aichi Biodiversity Targets; urges the Commission and the Member States to commit to immediate, substantial and additional measures on biodiversity conservation and restoration in order to achieve of all the objectives;
Amendment 178 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Emphasises the strong interconnection between biodiversity loss, climate change and theCOVID-19 pandemic; highlights the close links between human, animal and planet health, in the context of increased human - livestock - wildlife contacts and ecosystem degradation;
Amendment 195 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the recognition of organic farming as a strong component on the EU’s path towards more sustainable food systems; stresses the importance of the European Action Plan of organic farming to reach 25% organic land and increase the uptake of agro-ecological practices in EU by 2030; underlines that the development of organic food production must be accompanied by research, innovation and, scientific transferknowledge transfer and advisory services, market and supply chain development, and measures stimulating demand for organic food, ensuring both the stability of the organic products market and the fair remuneration of farmers and measures supporting young organic farmers;
Amendment 211 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Recalls that biodiversity and ecosystem preservation is fundamental to the achievement of the SDGs; stresses the need and calls on the Commission and the Member States to implement effective nature and biodiversity mainstreaming with biodiversity targets across all sectors, to change the economic model towards more sustainability;
Amendment 220 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. UEmphasises the strong links between the Forestry and Biodiversity Strategy; underlines the importance of sustainable forest management for the health and longevity of forest ecosystems and the preservation of the multifunctional role of forests, forest are indispensable for our Planet's life-support systems, covering 30% of the Earth's land area and hosting 80% of its biodiversity; highlights the potential of sustainable agroforestry to improve and boost ecosystem services and farmland biodiversity, while enhancing farm productivity and sustainability; calls on the Commission to propose a package of measures to ensure sustainable agricultural zero deforestation supply chains for products placed on the EU market; calls on the Commission to propose a package of measures to ensure sustainable agricultural zero deforestation supply chains for products placed on the EU market;
Amendment 239 #
8 a. Emphasises the strong links between Soil Strategy and Biodiversity Strategy; underlines the importance of water and soil ecosystems for the sustainability of agricultural production and climate mitigation and adaptation and urges Member States to adopt sustainable water and soil management practices and investments as part of their national CAP Strategic plans; Deplores that over 60% of all European soils are in an unhealthy state; welcomes the launch of the EU soil observatory and the EU mission entitled “Caring for soil is caring for life” with the ambitious goal of ensuring that 75% of soils are healthy by2030 and are able to provide essential ecosystem services.
Amendment 281 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Stresses the importance of plant protection products and tools for the stability of agricultural production and the sustainability of farmers’ incomes; considers that, although progress has been made, a substantialnd at least 50% reduction in the use and risks of chemical pesticides is needed by 2030; stresses the key role of integrated pest management in reducing pesticide dependency, and urges the Member States to ensure it is applied and its implementation is assessed systematically; stresses that farmers need a bigger toolbox of crop protection solutions and methods, as well as bolstered training and advisory systems;
Amendment 315 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Acknowledges the Commission’s initial assessment that to meet the needs of Biodiversity Strategy, including investment priorities for Natura 2000 and green infrastructure, at least EUR 20 billion per year should be unlocked for spending on nature; stresses the importance of mobilising public and private finance and of scaling up policy instruments and economic incentives at European and national level, in order to build an economy that sustains biodiversity and protects the ecosystems; underlines that a significant proportion of the EU budget and Next Generation EU expenditures should be invested in biodiversity and nature-based solutions fostering biodiversity; recalls that 7.5% of the annual spending under the MFF in the year 2024 and 10% of the annual spending in the year 2026 and 2027 shall be earmarked for biodiversity objectives.
Amendment 324 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10b. Underlines the need for nature and biodiversity protection and restoration to be priorities for the European Green Deal Investment Plan; stresses that applying the ‘do no harm’ principle is crucial in order to avoid negative biodiversity effects from economic support programmes and to ensure the economic investments, wherever possible, contribute to biodiversity conservation and restoration; underlines that the EU sustainable finance taxonomy is expected to help guide investment towards a green recovery, including through the promotion of biodiversity friendly investments.
Amendment 330 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 c (new)
Paragraph 10 c (new)
10c. Acknowledges the importance of tracking biodiversity relevant economic instruments and the finance they generate and to establish consistent and comparable finance tracking and reporting across Member States.
Amendment 333 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 d (new)
Paragraph 10 d (new)
10d. Welcomes the Commission’s commitments to ensure full implementation and enforcement of the biodiversity provisions in all trade agreements as well as to better assess the impact of trade agreements on biodiversity, with follow-up action to strengthen the biodiversity provisions of new agreements and existing agreements that are being modernised where relevant.
Amendment 366 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Stresses that Mediterranean and insular ecosystems are the most vulnerable to climate change impacts and biodiversity loss; urges the Commission to prioritise actions and recommendations for the protection of nature in these areas;
Amendment 646 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
Amendment 758 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Calls on the Commission to make immediate use of the possibilities for climate change mitigation and adaptation provided by the restoration of forests, wetlands, peatland, grasslands and coastal ecosystems and to integrate the preservation of nature into all relevant EU policies and programmes
Amendment 763 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 b (new)
Paragraph 17 b (new)
17b. Stresses that Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA), involving the conservation, sustainable management and restoration of ecosystems can help people adapt to the impacts of climate change;
Amendment 833 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Strongly regrets the decline of pollinators, which are a key indicator of the health of the environment; reiterates the position expressed in its resolution of 18 December 2019 on the EU Pollinators Initiative5 and calls for an urgent revision of the initiative; calls on the Commission to review the revised National Action Plans adopted under Directive 2009/128/EC and to take all possible measures to ensure that Member States adequately commit to pesticide use reduction targets and the necessary monitoring thereof; _________________ 5 Texts adopted, P9_TA(2019)0104.
Amendment 911 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
Amendment 957 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)
Paragraph 23 a (new)
23a. Calls on the Commission to ensure that revenues generated from the carbon border adjustment mechanism shall fund actions to protect biodiversity and ecosystems’ restoration;
Amendment 961 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 b (new)
Paragraph 23 b (new)
23b. Calls on the Commission to examine the introduction of debt swaps for nature as a means of reducing Member States’ national debt and conserving biodiversity;
Amendment 1209 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31 a (new)
Paragraph 31 a (new)
31a. Believes that the stakeholders platform must be thorough, include gender perspective and develop beyond the level of mere consultation, to the active and representative participation of communities and stakeholders in the decision-making process in order to inspire the ownership of decisions, plans and initiatives and the engagement in actions;