Experts criticize the species protection policy in Austria «kleinezeitung.at
The experts of the Biodiversity Council see little progress in protecting biodiversity in Austria. They call for the gap between commitment and action to be closed.
from Günter Pilch | 5.30 a.m., November 29, 2021
Lots of red, little green – that’s the result of the barometer on Austrian biodiversity policy Biodiversity Council released today. 20 experts different subjects assessed for the second time whether and how consistently Austria takes measures against the frenzied decimation of animal and plant species. The conclusion of the experts is mixed.
In the last two years, an ecological ministry for the environment and an ambitious draft of a biodiversity strategy have set things in motion, according to the report. “But the few political steps actually taken are far too small,” says Irmgard Greilhuber, Botanist at the University of Vienna and on the management team of the Biodiversity Council. There are no indications that the biodiversity crisis in the country could be defused in the near future. So have been for the past 20 years 40 percent of all breeding birds disappeared from the cultivated landscapes and the losses continue.
Only a few requirements implemented
Of the 19 demands made two years ago Of the independent panel of experts, the policy has so far only fully implemented one, while twelve have not at all. The experts therefore strongly recommend that ten percent of the cultivated land and forest areas in each municipality be turned into retreats for biodiversity. This requires a change in direction in agricultural and forestry policy and better species protection programs. “Instead, the construction rates continue to rise,” criticized Thomas Wrbka, Biodiversity researcher at the University of Vienna.
The biodiversity council of the Network Biodiversity Austria is exposed 20 experts together and act independently. It was constituted in 2019 and will be re-elected next year.
The biodiversity strategy 2030 Austria has so far been presented as a draft negotiation and is intended to help slow the decline in species. The finished paper should be in February 2022 to get presented.
The biodiversity council of the Network Biodiversity Austria is exposed 20 experts together and act independently. It was constituted in 2019 and will be re-elected next year.
The biodiversity strategy 2030 Austria has so far been presented as a draft negotiation and is intended to help slow the decline in species. The finished paper should be in February 2022 to get presented.
What the experts also consider urgently needed is a federal framework law for nature conservation. This is because this is purely a national matter, which makes a coherent environmental policy difficult. “It would be important if the federal government could stipulate key points in nature conservation that all states must adhere to,” says Wrbka.
There is also a lack of money. The federal biodiversity fund was increased to 50 million euros this year. But a billion is needed, says the ecologist Franz Essl and warns: “We are about to destroy the livelihood of our society.”