Published : May 22,
2013 - Protected areas cover more than one
fifth of the land in the 39 countries working
with the European Environment Agency (EEA).
On International Biodiversity Day, the EEA
encourages Europeans to find out more about
their closest nature reserve or national
park using a new interactive map.
There is an amazing
diversity of natural environments to be
explored throughout Europe. These include
105 000 protected sites, from the Arctic
polar deserts and the boreal forests in
the North to the dense matorral shrubland
and wood-pasture mosaic of the montado in
the South.
Some of these areas
are unique landscapes while others allow
visitors to experience the profound interaction
of humans and the environment. They are
home to common plant and animals as well
as endemic species. The majority of Europe’s
most threatened species can also be found
within protected areas.
The term ‘protected
areas’ covers areas with many different
types of management. Some protected areas
allow recreation facilities, housing, fishing
and industry, while others are closed to
most human intervention. Many of Europe’s
protected areas promote specific types of
land management and forestry practices which
help maintain and restore species and ecosystems.
Celebrating protected
areas’ important contribution to maintaining
biodiversity in Europe, the EEA website
has some material on protected areas in
Europe, together with a range of information
products on biodiversity.
Jacqueline McGlade,
EEA Executive Director, said: “Europe’s
protected areas are vital for maintaining
and restoring biodiversity. Even more important
are the direct benefits these areas provide
for people, in terms of health, clean water
and air, economic benefits such as tourism
and fisheries, and for education. Observing
nature inside the confines of protected
areas can help to give us early warnings
of changes that will be critical to our
future wellbeing.”
More information on
protected areas and other biodiversity topics
is available on the Biodiversity Information
System for Europe (BISE). This partnership
platform supports the knowledge base for
the European policy and implementation of
the Convention of Biological Diversity and
respective targets.
+ More
Neonicotinoid pesticides
are a huge risk – so ban is welcome, says
EEA
Published : May 02,
2013 - The European Commission has decided
to ban three neonicotinoid insecticides.
These chemicals can harm honeybees, according
to a large body of scientific evidence,
so the European Environment Agency (EEA)
commends the precautionary decision to ban
them.
Based on the body of
evidence, we can see that it is absolutely
correct to take a precautionary approach
and ban these chemicals.
Jacqueline McGlade,
EEA Executive Director
The three banned insecticides
are clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiametoxam.
A recent assessment from the European Food
Safety Authority also found that there were
“high acute risks” from the three insecticides.
In the recent EEA report
‘Late Lessons from Early Warnings, volume
II’, published in January this year, the
EEA considered the body of evidence surrounding
imidacloprid from scientific studies, beekeepers
and industry, concluding that the chemical
should be withdrawn from the market given
the evidence of harm and scale of the risk.
The insecticides may directly affect a wide
range of organisms, both on land and in
water. In addition, honeybees and other
insects perform vital pollination to crops
and wild plants.
The recently published
Late Lessons chapter on imidacloprid has
informed debate within the EU institutions,
as it describes how mounting scientific
evidence has been systematically suppressed
for many years and early warning were ignored.
Where such evidence exists, uncertainty
should not be an excuse for inaction, the
report states.
The ban, while welcomed,
is limited in scope and should be seen as
only a starting point on the discourse over
the use of this class of pesticides. It
only applies to three of seven neonicotinoids
and only for use with “crops attractive
to bees”, so it does not take into account
the impacts of neonicotinoids on aquatic
invertebrate species, birds or other insects
which are also major areas of concern. Neither
does the ban cover new neonicotinoid insecticide
Sulfoxaflor which may come onto the market
soon.
“Based on the body of
evidence, we can see that it is absolutely
correct to take a precautionary approach
and ban these chemicals,” EEA Executive
Director Jacqueline McGlade said.
“France has banned some
of these chemicals on sunflower and maize
since 2004, and it seems productivity has
not been affected – 2007 was France’s best
year for yield of these crops for over a
decade. Also, any economic analysis should
consider the almost immeasurable value of
pollination carried out by honeybees and
other wild bees. Indeed, continuing to use
these chemicals would risk a vital service
that underpins European agriculture,” Prof.
McGlade said.
