Environment charities have welcomed the publication this week of Scotland’s Natural Environment Bill, a crucial step in fighting the nature and climate crises.
The publication of this Bill, with its provision for legally binding nature recovery targets, has been a key ask of the Scotland Loves Nature campaign, launched in 2024. Alongside legal targets, the campaign also calls for more funding to restore nature, and support for communities to protect and restore their local environments.
The charities hope that legally binding targets for nature recovery will help increase wildlife populations across Scotland on land and sea, end the threat of species going extinct from Scotland and increase the extent and quality of Scotland’s habitats – such as peatlands, native woodlands and seagrass meadows.
Scotland ranks in the lowest 15% of countries globally for the overall health of its biodiversity, and since the 1970s almost half of its species have decreased in number. One in nine species are at risk of extinction in Scotland today.
Deborah Long, chief executive of Scottish Environment LINK who have been running the campaign, said today:
“From our local parks to our stunning beaches, glens and lochs, Scotland’s nature gives us so much. It’s central to our health and wellbeing and to tackling climate change.
“This week’s publication of the long-awaited Natural Environment Bill gives us hope that nature in Scotland can recover. The introduction of legal targets for nature recovery will encourage long-term planning and strategic thinking, which is sorely needed. But perhaps most importantly, these targets will make the government accountable to all of us.”
“But targets alone will not be enough to halt nature loss. We need action across society – and crucially, funding to hit these nature recovery targets. Scotland’s people love Scotland’s nature, and we need the government to support all of us to work to restore it.”