Key Message 1 | Harmonization of agro-environmental policy

Submitted by planceleur@gmail.com on

Short Description: 

Increased use of cross-referencing between agricultural and environmental policies and strategy documents is needed for improved coherence on national and local levels.

Challenge: 

Strategies and directives, such as the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the Water Framework Directive, the Nitrates Directive, and the Habitats Directive, are developed by different sector authorities, and this can cause ineffective policy programmes.

Evidence: 

The OPTAIN survey results show that incoherent policy objectives significantly hamper effective implementation of measures most of the surveyed countries.
Specifically, the lack of cross-referencing between the Water Framework Directive and the Common Agricultural Policy can cause incoherent spatial planning for reaching ecological status objectives.
In addition, some respondents say that legal acts need a more precise and explicit reference to specific measures, such as NSWRM.
Measures supported by the Common Agricultural Policy (such as environmental focus areas and greening)
must be developed further to contribute to reaching the Water Framework Directive objectives.
Furthermore, climate change mitigation continues to be only indirectly or vaguely addressed by acts and strategies in most of the surveyed countries.

Recommendation: 

  • Improved harmonization of the Common Agricultural Policy, the Nitrates Directive, the Habitats and the Birds Directives, and the Water Framework Directive are needed for a more effective programme of measures and coherent financial periods.
  • Cross-referencing between directives and policies should be more frequently applied to enhance policy coherence.
  • Projected climate change impacts need stronger consideration in agriculture, water, and nature protection directives and policies.

Explanation: 

Cross-referencing between directives, acts, and strategies is an important legal mechanism for promoting policy coherence, especially when this also addresses the roles and responsibilities of authorities. The Common Agriculture Policy cross-compliance mechanism with the EU rules on public, animal, and plant
health, animal welfare; and the environment, linking to the Nitrates Directive, the Birds and the Habitats
Directive, and the statutory requirements represent an example and a powerful mechanism to enhance policy
coherence.