EU soil law wins lukewarm support

Environment ministers are set to agree on Europe’s first-ever directive on soil protection next week (20 December), but green campaigners warn that it does not go far enough to prevent environmental degradation.

Under a directive on which ministers are expected to reach political agreement at the Environment Council, governments would be required to identify areas where soil is at risk from erosion and landslides, and take measures in response.

But campaigners are concerned that the proposals are too weak. Pieter de Pous, a policy officer at the European Environmental Bureau, said that he was not enthusiastic about the current proposal because "the amelioration strategy" to protect damaged soils will not be binding on national governments. "This is a very modest step towards a soil policy, we are strongly supporting such a policy…but it will need to be followed up in future by a more robust policy." said De Pous.

Germany and the UK have strong reservations about the soil policy, although this is not expected to hinder the agreement being reached next week.

On 21 November, the German Agriculture Minister Horst Seehofer sent a letter to Chancellor Angela Merkel urging her not to accept any binding measures. The letter says: "With reference to the principle of subsidiarity we should not accept any mandatory EU measures which could be taken in a more targeted and less bureaucratic way at national level."

The UK is worried about the cost of the measures. A spokeswoman said that the UK was concerned that precautionary action outlined in the draft directive could put heavy costs on individuals and the public sector. "We want proportionate action and we have to feel the response is proportionate," she said.

In 2006, the European Commission published what it described as a "comprehensive EU strategy on soils", in an attempt to protect soils from the demands of agriculture, deforestation, industry, tourism and urban development. To date, there has been no specific legislation on soil. Member states endorsed plans for this law in 2002.

Environment ministers are set to agree on Europe’s first-ever directive on soil protection next week (20 December), but green campaigners warn that it does not go far enough to prevent environmental degradation.