New EU member states set an example for the older and richer EU members at implementing environmental protection legislation, established World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in a report published a year after the last round of EU enlargement.
The report especially praises Slovenia for its proposal to include the largest percentage of its territory among all EU members (35%) into the Natura 2000 programme of protected areas.
Contrary to initial expectations, the younger EU members have shown more progress at implementing legislation in the field than their older counterparts, and have learned a lot from their western neighbours, said the Natura 2000 coordinator at WWF Andreas Beckmann in Brussels on Tuesday.
The older 15 countries, which were supposed to choose the areas for Natura 2000 until 1998, have now almost completed the task and have shown significant improvement. Austria suggested that 2.5% of its territory be protected at first, but now changed it to 14%.
Environmental protection looks good on paper, however, the real effort still awaits the countries, warns WWF. The states will have to ensure adequate financial means for the implementation of the Natura 2000 programme and the agricultural incentives in the 2007-2013 financial perspective.
The new and future EU members hold a large part of the EU natural resources, which means these countries are competitive and under a great pressure at the same time. Natura 2000 will be the key means for ensuring sustainable social-economic development and preserving Europe's most valuable natural areas.
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