Hunting and Wildlife, FACE Europe supports the European “Birds” and Habitat Directives by inviting the Institutions of the European Union and the Member States to support action and to recognize the valid role of hunting in achieving the objectives of the Nature Directives.
FACE is constantly committed to supporting both Directives, Birds and Habitats, as demonstrated by its commitment to Agreements with interested parties on the initiatives of the European Commission. FACE invites the Institutions of the European Union and the Member States to join in this support action and to recognize the valid role of hunting in achieving the objectives of the Nature Directives.
The contribution of the Nature Directives to biodiversity The Nature Directives are necessary for the achievement of Objective 1 of the Biodiversity Strategy, but also for Objective 2 on restocking and contribute to Objective 6 by helping the European Union to meet its international commitments for the conservation of biodiversity. The European Parliament adopted the resolution on the EU 2020 Biodiversity Strategy, finalizing the adoption process at the highest political level in the European Union. This commitment must now be fulfilled. The Nature Directives are familiar instruments to the Member States, having already included them in international legislation and, therefore, capable of achieving the objectives. Any new legislation will not address issues that the Nature Directives have not already overcome.
The Nature Directives are appropriate tools to achieve the objectives of Biodiversity, but they require greater political support and the will to apply them favorably. It would also be helpful to prioritize species in a more unfavorable state, rather than giving resources to charismatic species. It should be remembered that the Habitats Directive covers 1.200 species of wild animals and plants, a majority of which (60%) are in a poor state of conservation. For the Birds Directive the situation is better, with 52% of population species in a "safe" state, but it is logical because it covers all species, both rare and common. Evidence again shows that protective measures under the Birds Directive have been helpful in achieving results.
The Natura 2000 network, offering vital protection to Europe's most threatened species and habitats, is one of the main achievements of EU nature policy. The latter benefits from the fact that it is based on the principle of conservation and sustainable use, ensuring lasting coexistence with human activities and the conservation of biodiversity, which as such is not in contradiction with hunting.
The contribution of the Nature Directives to hunting and its governance.
The Birds Directive fully recognizes the legitimacy of hunting wild birds as a type of sustainable use. Hunting is an activity that provides significant social, cultural, economic and environmental benefits across the European Union. It is limited to some species, listed in the Directive, which also provides a series of ecological principles and legal requirements relating to this activity, to be applied through the legislation of the Member States. This provides the framework for hunting governance. Despite this recognition, hunting is too often blamed for being detrimental to environmental objectives even though the evidence suggests that some impacts are of little consequence compared to problems such as habitat loss. On the other hand, if authorized, hunting can provide clear and significant benefits.
If the Nature Directives continue to be applied too restrictively to hunting then these benefits could be reduced, with negative impact on rural economies and the achievement of the EU's environmental goals. This is not a lack of alternatives of the Nature Directives but is due to its interpretation and application. As an interested party participating in the consultations on the structure of the Fitness Check of EU Nature Legislation, FACE states that the Directives are fully adequate to support the strategic objectives for nature protection in the EU.
FACE invites the European Union to a greater recognition of hunters in their role for the achievement of environmental objectives. This was highlighted during the conference, held in September last year on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Birds Directive and the 10th anniversary of the BirdLife-FACE Agreement. FACE also calls for greater knowledge of the importance of the 7 million European hunters and that their role in achieving the strategic objectives of the Directives be better recognized.
(June 24, 2015)
Hunting Federation