Biodiversity in Europe - “it is time to ring the alarm bell”

Madrid, 21 January 2004

On Monday 19 January, the Third Intergovernmental 'Biodiversity in Europe' Conference was opened with key note speeches from the EU Commissioner for the Environment, Mrs. Margot Wallström, the Ukrainian Minister of Environment Protection, Mr. Serhiy Polyakov and Secretary General Mr. Juan Del Alamo on behalf of the Spanish Minister of the Environment, Ms. Elvira Rodriguez.

The Conference stressed that substantially increased efforts are required to safeguard Europe’s nature and biodiversity from further destruction by humankind. EU Commissioner Wallström said that the European Commission will step up its efforts to halt the decline of nature and biodiversity. She highlighted, while referring to the upcoming 7th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, that a true global partnership on biodiversity is required. She also said: ”It is time to ring the alarm bell. Biodiversity loss has accelerated to an unprecedented level, both in Europe and worldwide”. Minister Serhiy Polyakov and Secretary General Juan Del Alamo underlined the importance of the European nature and biodiversity policies, in particular the legal instruments for protected areas and policies to integrate biodiversity into economic and land use sectors.

The Third Intergovernmental Conference 'Biodiversity in Europe' is hosted by the Spanish Government in Madrid, between 19-21 January 2004. The event, which is organized by the United Nations Environment Programme and the Council of Europe in the framework of the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy (PEBLDS), focuses on the priority issues for the 7th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 9 - 20 February 2004, and on the achievement of the so-called '2010 target'.

This goal to halt the degradation of the region's biological and landscape diversity by the year 2010, was endorsed as part of the ‘Kyiv Resolution on Biodiversity’ at the 5th Ministerial Conference ‘Environment for Europe’ in Kyiv, May 2003. The Conference in Madrid will decide on further actions in the field of the nine priority themes of the Kyiv Resolution, such as agriculture, forestry, ecological networks, biodiversity financing, and alien species. EC Commissioner Wallström underlined that the European Commission is committed to work with PEBLDS to deliver 2010.

On behalf of UNEP Mr. Shafqat Kakakhel, Deputy Executive Director, outlined the challenges ahead for Europe to achieve the 9 targets set in Kyiv for halting the loss of biodiversity to 2010. He stressed that achieving these targets will fail unless statements are supported by action on the ground. He said that the UNEP-IUCN-ECNC-REC Biodiversity Service will remain available to assist countries and in fulfilling their biodiversity requirements under the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Note for the editor:

The Third Intergovernmental Conference “Biodiversity in Europe” and 8th meeting of the Council of the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy take place between 18 – 22 January 2004, in the Palacio de Congresos, Madrid, Spain.

The conference brings together Ministers and other representatives of all European governments, senior officials, international organizations and NGOs. Key items of the agenda include marine and coastal biological diversity, biological diversity of mountainous regions, protected areas and ecological networks of Europe, transfer of technology and technology cooperation, and the follow up of the World Summit on Sustainable Development.

Directly before and after the Third Intergovernmental Conference “Biodiversity in Europe”, the 8th Meeting of the Council of the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy takes place. The Strategy promotes the European implementation of the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and issues such as the realization of the Pan-European Ecological Network.

For more information please contact Ms Ivonne Higuero, Co-ordinator of the Joint Secretariat of PEBLDS (UNEP and the Council of Europe), tel: +41 22 91 78395 , E-mail: Ivonne.Higuero@unep.ch , and/or Ms Agnes Bruszik, Programme and Communication Officer, ECNC, tel: +36 20 380 5005 E-mail: Agnes Bruszik