A success story for biological diversity
"20 years, 20 percent – how to proceed with Natura 2000"? This is the question being discussed by nature conservation stakeholders at the Natura 2000 summit in Berlin on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Natura 2000.
Twenty years ago the EU Habitats Directive came into force. Since then, the network of protected sites established by the directive has been expanded to protect particularly valuable, rare or endangered species of fauna and flora in their natural habitats. After a tentative start, Natura 2000 has now become a remarkable support network for biodiversity.
There is good reason to celebrate this and look back on the past 20 years. In terms of size, the network is unique. Covering 20 per cent of Europe's territory and 15.4 per cent of Germany, it is the largest network of its kind worldwide. More than 25,000 protected sites can be found across Europe – from the Canary Islands to Finland's northern Lapland region. The wide variety of protected sites cover a range of biodiversity: approx. 920 fauna and flora species enjoy protection, among them lynx, butterflies and endemic orchid species. Natura 2000 thus constitutes a major pillar of biodiversity conservation.
Over 20 years success has been achieved. However, the conservation status of some fauna, flora and habitats is still not sufficient to ensure their long-term survival. At the Natura 2000 summit experts agreed that a lot has been achieved but that good management of the sites and further development of the network are essential for esnuring the long-term quality of protected sites.