Scientists concerned about biodiversity as Cabinet refuses to present nature plan

Scientists from Wageningen University & Research are concerned that the government is not presenting a draft nature plan ahead of a summit on biodiversity, they wrote on Sunday on the nature platform Nature Today.

According to the six scientists, the Dutch nature plan was drawn up by policymakers, knowledge institutions, companies, and nature and environmental organizations. It was agreed at the last biodiversity summit in Montreal in 2022 that the countries would do this. The idea is that the action plans should help to better protect and restore nature and biodiversity.

The so-called NBSAP plans had to be submitted before the start of the new summit: on October 21 of this year. But, according to the scientists, “the Cabinet is leaving the homework in the bag. The Netherlands will not submit the finished nature plan”. The “stakeholders” in the plan were told earlier this week that the Cabinet wanted to continue working on the diversity plan “in line with the framework agreement and the coalition program”, the scientists said.

“As scientists and those who have been involved in the development of the Dutch National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, we are very concerned about this. If we as the Netherlands are not even prepared to present plans that have been developed carefully and in proper consultation with all stakeholders, this does not bode well for concrete actions that the Netherlands will take,” they stated in the article on Sunday.

The scientists are worried about the impact the Cabinet’s decision will have on Netherlands biodiversity. “The need for concrete actions for nature is high: better protection and restoration of nature is not a luxury, not a 'nice to have'. Postponing effective nature management will have consequences for our daily lives: for our health, for the economy, for what we eat,” they write in the Nature Today article.

This year's Biodiversity Summit will take place in Cali, Colombia. From October 21 to November 1, UN member states will discuss global approaches to biodiversity loss, conservation, and access to natural resources.