en | fr | de | es |    Press releasesStrasbourg 14.11.2007

Environmental protection: EP vote on soil protection legislation could have been worse

The European Parliament today adopted its report on a legislative proposal on soil protection in the EU. After the vote, German Green Hiltrud Breyer said:

"It is regrettable that MEPs have voted to water down an already weak proposal from the European Commission for EU legislation on soil protection, however the outcome could have been worse. The main thrust of the legislation was maintained despite the massive lobby against it and this is welcome.

"The Parliament rejected proposals to weaken provisions on the prevention of soil contamination and maintained an obligation for soil remediation (i.e. to repair degraded soil). The requirement to identify contaminated sites was maintained, albeit in a weaker and more restricted manner. An amendment denying public the right to participate in the processes was also corrected.

"Given the serious nature of soil degradation across Europe, the need for EU rules on soil protection is clear. We also need to prevent a distortion of competition in Europe through differing requirements in Member States on polluted sites. Soil quality is also important for the climate, as well as having a crucial impact on carbon absorption capacity and releases from land. The EU legislation adopted by MEPs today is far from sufficient in protecting the soil from degradation, but it is a step in right direction to what is required to protect this precious resource."