EU report: Belgium’s nature under pressure from mobility, urbanisation and agriculture
According to a new report by the European Environment Agency, Belgium is making progress in the fight against pollution and climate change, but structural challenges remain significant.
The European Environment Agency (EEA) published its new report on the state of the environment in Europe on Monday. The key message: despite significant reductions in emissions and pollution, the state of the environment in the EU remains worrying. The report emphasises that climate change and environmental degradation pose a direct threat to Europe's competitiveness, which depends on natural resources.
There is also work to be done in Belgium: despite a number of successes, the pressure on the environment from mobility, urbanisation and intensive agriculture remains high. This pressure must be reduced in order to slow down the loss of biodiversity and improve water quality and soil health.
The EEA points out that only 14.6 per cent of the country is protected nature area, which is below the EU targets. On the other hand, 37.8 per cent of Belgian marine areas are protected, which is higher than the European target. The agency also underlines that Belgium needs to accelerate its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions by 47 per cent by 2030, as agreed at the European level.
A major problem is that the country’s energy system still runs largely on fossil and nuclear energy. “The share of renewable energy is growing, but too slowly,” states the report. Belgium does remain a frontrunner in offshore wind energy, with the fifth-largest capacity worldwide in 2021. However, domestic production of solar and wind energy is hampered by slow permitting processes.
The Belgian mobility system remains car-centric, resulting in traffic jams and pollution. Electric driving is however gaining ground. Sustainable food is difficult for citizens to access: food aid is on the rise and successive natural crises have exacerbated the situation. 21.8 per cent of Belgian households are struggling with energy poverty.
Good news is that Belgium is achieving the European target of recycling half of its urban waste. It also ranks fourth in the EU in terms of material reuse.
"We need to be more ambitious"
“Looking at these figures, we need to be more ambitious,” stated MEP Sara Matthieu of the Flemish green party Groen. “The report painfully exposes what stagnation costs us all: higher energy bills, more economic damage from floods and forest fires, and nature that is collapsing at an ever-increasing rate.”
Every five years, the European Environment Agency (EEA) publishes a report on the state of the environment for policymakers at the European and national levels, as well as for the general public. This is the seventh report on the state of the environment that the EEA has published since 1995.
Illustration © PHOTO BELPRESS
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