P9_TA(2023)0441 – Revised pollinators initiative - a new deal for pollinators – European Parliament resolution of 23 November 2023 on the revised Pollinators Initiative – A new deal for pollinators (2023/2720(RSP))
Date: 2023-11-23
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: EU environmental policy, EU initiative, apiculture, biodiversity, biotope, environmental impact, environmental protection, insect, plant health product, pollinator








C_202404227EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2024/4227


24.7.2024






P9_TA(2023)0441

Revised pollinators initiative - a new deal for pollinators


European Parliament resolution of 23 November 2023 on the revised Pollinators Initiative – A new deal for pollinators (2023/2720(RSP))

(C/2024/4227)



The European Parliament,







—


the Commission communication of 24 January 2023 entitled ‘Revision of the EU Pollinators Initiative – A new deal for pollinators’ (COM(2023)0035),










—


having regard to the Commission communication of 5 April 2023 on the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) ‘Save bees and farmers! Towards a bee-friendly agriculture for a healthy environment’
                   (1),










—


having regard to the Commission communication of 1 June 2018 entitled ‘EU Pollinators Initiative’ (COM(2018)0395),










—


having regard to its resolution of 18 December 2019 on the EU Pollinators Initiative (2),










—


having regard to the 2016 assessment report of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services on pollinators, pollination and food production,










—


having regard to the opinion of the European Committee of the Regions of 26 January 2022 entitled ‘Local and regional authorities accelerating the implementation of the EU Pollinators Initiative’,










—


having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 13 July 2023 entitled ‘Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on the Revision of the EU Pollinators Initiative – A new deal for pollinators’
                   (3),










—


having regard to the Special Report 15/2020 of the European Court of Auditors of 9 July 2020 entitled ‘Protection of wild pollinators in the EU – Commission initiatives have not borne fruit’,










—


having regard to the Commission communication of 20 May 2020 entitled ‘EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 – Bringing nature back into our lives’ (COM(2020)0380),










—


having regard to the Commission communication of 20 May 2020 entitled ‘A Farm to Fork Strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system’ (COM(2020)0381),










—


having regard to the Commission communication of 14 October 2020 entitled ‘Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability – Towards a Toxic-Free Environment’ (COM(2020)0667),










—


having regard to its resolution of 16 January 2019 on the Union’s authorisation procedure for pesticides (4),










—


having regard to its resolution of 9 June 2021 on the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030: Bringing nature back into our lives (5),










—


having regard to its resolution of 20 October 2021 on a farm to fork strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system (6),










—


having regard to its resolution of 23 October 2019 on the draft Commission regulation amending Regulation (EU) No 546/2011 as regards the assessment of the impact of plant protection products on honeybees (7),










—


having regard to the questions to the Council and the Commission on the revised Pollinators Initiative – A new deal for pollinators (O-000050/2023 – B9-0032/2023 and O-000051/2023 – B9-0033/2023),










—


having regard to Rules 136(5) and 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the motion for a resolution of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety,










A.


whereas around 80 % of crop and wild flowering plant species in Europe depend, at least to some extent, on animal pollination, and wild pollinators may provide as much as 50 % of the required pollination services (8);










B.


whereas according to the European Red List, the population of around one in three bee, butterfly and hoverfly species are declining; whereas, moreover, 1 in 10 bee and butterfly species and one in three hoverfly species are threatened with extinction; whereas at regional level, insect population losses of up to 75 % have been observed over the last three decades;










C.


whereas pollinators are primarily wild species of insects, such as bees (including bumble bees, honey bees and solitary species of bees), wasps, hoverflies, butterflies, moths, beetles and other fly species such as bats and birds, that transfer pollen from male to female parts of flowers, enabling plants to be fertilised and to reproduce;










D.


whereas wild pollinators species and populations are declining primarily due to human activity, especially as a result of climate change, intensive agriculture, the use of pesticides, the loss and degradation of natural habitats, environmental pollution and invasive alien species and diseases;










E.


whereas collecting objective, reliable and comparable data on the various species richness and on the abundance of pollinator species in the field is fundamental for assessing the state of pollinator populations and for assessing whether the EU and its Member States have made progress in reversing the declines of these populations;










F.


whereas honeybees make a significant contribution to pollination; whereas however, this does not replace the vital role that a diverse range of wild insect pollinators, such as solitary bees, butterflies, hoverflies and beetles, play in the pollination process, although their relative contributions differ according to crop and location;










G.


whereas healthy populations of wild pollinators provide more robust and reliable pollination services for the agricultural sector; whereas over-reliance on pollination by a single species, such as honey bees, also leads to increased risks related to the species’ higher vulnerability to diseases and invasive alien species;










H.


whereas crop yield and/or quality depend on both the abundance and diversity of pollinators; whereas the variation in pollinator presence, abundance and richness can be, in some contexts and depending on the species’ ecological traits, explained more by proximity and the proportion of favourable (semi-)natural habitats like grasslands and forests than by in-field flower strips (9); whereas in other instances, the flower richness of an agricultural plot’s understorey can compensate for isolation from the natural habitat (10);










I.


whereas policy tools intended to ensure sufficient crop pollination need to take account of potential competition between honeybees and native wild pollinators; whereas this necessitates a better assessment of when, where, and how many honeybees are required to ensure the effective pollination of mass-flowering crops without harming wild native pollinators or plants (11);










J.


whereas the pressures on pollinators are mainly associated with agriculture; whereas unsustainable commercial forestry, which is responsible for the lack of old trees, deadwood and associated microhabitats, has been also identified as one of the main threats to hoverflies, 37 % of which are threatened with extinction in Europe (12);










K.


whereas pollinators are essential for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem health, as they contribute to the maintenance and creation of wildlife habitats, are crucial for seed production in both agricultural and natural systems, are integral to food production, nutrition quality and food security, and contribute to the beauty and aesthetics of landscapes by enabling the growth and flowering of various plants; whereas their direct contribution to EU agriculture is estimated at around EUR 15 billion (13); whereas four out of five crop species and wild flower species depend, at least to some extent, on insects for pollinators; whereas pollinators significantly support, among other things, the livelihoods of farmers and other stakeholders in the agricultural sector;










L.


whereas a new report on trends for grassland butterflies across Europe shows that the number of these butterflies declined by 36 % in just 10 years and that the main factors driving their decline are agricultural intensification from both the conversion of grasslands to arable fields and the heavy use of fertilisers and herbicides, which reduce the number of wildflowers on which butterflies breed;










M.


whereas pollinators are vital for both food and nutrition security and are essential for food types like fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds, which are in turn crucial for ensuring good dietary health and particularly for preventing non-communicable diseases;










N.


whereas the decline in wild pollinators and the implications on food security, agricultural resilience, human health, quality of life, quality nutrition and ecosystem services have increased public awareness and raised serious concerns across society, prompting action to address the causes behind the decline and mitigate the consequences, which led to, among other things, the successful conclusion of the European Citizens’ Initiative ‘Save bees and farmers’, which calls for a transition towards more bee-friendly agriculture;










O.


whereas the Commission’s guide for pollinator-friendly cities provides valuable recommendations for urban environments that support pollinators;










P.


whereas in its 2019 report on the state of the European environment, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said that 9 of the 13 specific policy objectives set for 2020 in the area of protecting, conserving and enhancing European biodiversity and nature were largely not be on track in 2020 (14); whereas the nine targets included goals related to EU protected species and habitats, common species (birds and butterflies), and ecosystem condition and services;







General remarks and the consequences of pollinator loss










1.


Welcomes the revised EU Pollinators Initiative – A new deal for pollinators and underlines the urgent need for the Commission, the Member States and regional and local actors to take concrete action to reverse pollinator decline as soon as possible and by 2030 the latest;












2.


Welcomes the European Citizens’ Initiative ‘Save bees and farmers’; believes that environmentally friendly agriculture is the basis for the sustainable production of healthy food; believes that the demands of citizens need to be translated into future policies quickly and efficiently;












3.


Agrees that pollinator decline poses a threat to human well-being, agricultural productivity, food security and nature in general; stresses that pollination by wild and managed pollinators is an essential agricultural input; highlights that the EUR 4.5 billion annual value of pollination as an ecosystem service in the EU only records the value of the service that is actually performed and results in a yield of fruits and vegetables; stresses that if there were not a shortage of pollinators owing to pressures they face, this value could be much higher (15);












4.


Emphasises that crop pollination mediated by wild and domesticated animals is a crucial and endangered ecosystem service (16); notes that the global economic value of pollination from domesticated and wild animals has been estimated at EUR 153 billion, while the consumer surplus loss associated with a total loss of animal pollination was estimated between EUR 190 and EUR 310 billion (17);












5.


Stresses the benefits for human health and well-being provided by pollination, and the need to ensure that these can continue sustainably; notes further that pollinators contribute to the agricultural yield for 35 % of global food production (18), while animal-pollinated crops contain the majority of several vitamins (A, C and E) and minerals (calcium, fluoride and iron) available in diets worldwide (19); emphasises, therefore, that pollinators are vital for both food and nutrition security;












6.


Notes that pollinator decline has many adverse effects on the environment and on human health; highlights that one of these is the decline in the global availability of fruit and vegetables, which could lead to a decrease in consumption and therefore to increases in non-communicable diseases (20);












7.


Recognises the contribution made by the first EU Pollinators Initiative; calls on the Commission to incorporate the results of the initiative in the future biodiversity strategy, including other key ecosystem services that insects provide;












8.


Welcomes the commitments of the European Economic and Social Committee and the European Committee of Regions on the opportunities for and shared responsibilities of Europe’s socio-occupational interest groups and local and regional authorities in accelerating the implementation of the Pollinators Initiative and achieving its goals;












9.


Emphasises the need to address all of the main drivers of pollinator decline;






Ensuring policy coherence: agriculture and forestry, reducing pollution and increasing connectivity










10.


Recalls that the European Green Deal was adopted as a new holistic strategy to enable the EU to tackle climate- and environment-related challenges while leaving no one behind; recalls that the objectives of the Green Deal, including the EU biodiversity strategy and the farm to fork strategy, will be met only when the main goal of the revised EU Pollinators Initiative, namely reversing pollinator decline, is effectively achieved; calls on the Commission and the Member States to implement both strategies swiftly and fully; reiterates that the biodiversity strategy for 2030 needs to fully deliver on its targets; urges the Commission and the Member States to commit to substantial and additional measures on biodiversity conservation;












11.


Emphasises the need to close the gaps in key EU sectoral policies tackling pollinator decline, and to include measures to protect pollinators in relevant EU policies;












12.


Emphasises that dedicated national and/or regional pollinator protection strategies are essential tools to mobilise all relevant parties and manage all actions needed to reverse pollinator decline; appreciates the efforts of the Member States that have adopted dedicated national or regional strategies to protect pollinators and calls on the remaining ones to do so as soon as possible in order to jointly address all drivers of the decline in a coordinated manner, taking into account national, regional and local specificities and conditions;












13.


Calls on the Commission to assess the compliance of the common agriculture policy (CAP) strategic plans with the objectives of the EU Pollinators Initiative; calls on the Commission and the Member States to jointly improve those plans, which have been found to fall short of the necessary actions; calls, furthermore, on the Commission and the Member States to create a specific chapter within the CAP strategic plans to lay out concrete measures aimed at protecting wild and managed pollinators, considering their importance as providers of agricultural input; underlines that the 2023-2027 CAP budget provides support for climate-relevant practices and should be used to reach the EU’s biodiversity objectives, including pollinator protection;












14.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that current and future governance mechanisms and platforms are fully functional in order to reach, by agreed on deadlines, the goals of the Pollinators Initiative and, more broadly, of the biodiversity strategy; calls, in this respect, on the Commission to implement necessary legislative and non-legislative measures that will work on closing existing governance and policy gaps and removing obstacles to meet objectives and targets agreed on at EU level;












15.


Underlines, in this regard, the strong interconnection between the revised EU Pollinators Initiative and the proposed EU nature restoration law when it comes to achieving a trend reversal in pollinator decline, in particular through the alignment of national nature restoration measures with the relevant policies under the EU Pollinators Initiative;












16.


Underlines the continued need to better protect pollinators from risks resulting from pesticides and biocides, and regrets the delay in taking action to protect pollinators through the authorisation procedures laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 (21) and Regulation (EU) No 528/2012 (22);












17.


Considers the presence of old trees, deadwood and associated microhabitats as essential to pollinators for their development and their ability to forage and nest; appreciates, in this regard, that one conservation plan under the new deal for pollinators will focus on forest landscapes specifically; believes that the conservation plan should look for synergies with closer-to-nature forestry;












18.


Stresses the importance of improving the scientific evidence base for assessing the relative toxicity of all pesticides, not just insecticides, to bees and other pollinators, so that the harm reduction targets can be better adjusted by 2027; further stresses the importance of amending legislation and implementing policies according to the latest scientific evidence in order to halt pollinator decline;












19.


Calls for a ban by no later than 2027 on the importation of agricultural products produced using pesticides that are banned in the EU for reasons of human health and biodiversity protection and that can cause unacceptable harm to pollinators;












20.


Takes note of the European Food Safety Authority’s revised guidance on the risk assessment of plant protection products on bees (Apis mellifera, Bombus spp. and solitary bees) and calls on the Commission and the Member States to implement it swiftly; takes note of the agreement in the EU’s Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting of 28-29 June 2021 to establish a specific protection goal of 10 % as the maximum permitted reduction of colony size resulting from honeybees’ exposure to pesticides; takes note of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed’s decision of May 2022 to implement an undefined threshold approach for specific protection goals for both bumblebees and solitary bees; considers that specific protection goals for wild pollinators must be in line with the need for the recovery of already depleted populations; takes note of the Commission’s commitment to update the current pesticide risk assessment scheme for non-target arthropods (under which all wild pollinator species not included in the Bee Guidance Document are assessed) and stresses that such an update is an urgent priority;












21.


Reminds the Commission and the Member States of its widely supported objection to an implementing act: The impact of plant protection products on honeybees (23) and of its long-held position that pollinators must be given greater protection;












22.


Is concerned by the limitations of single-active ingredient assessments that are used during the pesticide authorisation process; calls, therefore, on the Commission and the European Food Safety Authority to enable a transition towards a more holistic and contextualised environmental risk assessment of pesticides for insects, including pollinators, without delay, building on the IPol-ERA project; believes that this systemic transformation should take into account a broad range of pollinators and the cumulative effects of different chemicals, and that it requires coordinated efforts from all relevant agencies;












23.


Takes note of the European Chemicals Agency’s draft guidance on the assessment of risks to bees from the use of biocides; underlines the need to swiftly finalise the guidance document, so that it can start being used in the authorisation process under Regulation (EU) No 528/2012 at EU or Member State level and for approval at EU level;












24.


Stresses that meaningful engagement by large food producers, wholesalers and retailers with their suppliers could bring significant added value in reducing the use and risks of pesticides; underlines the need for large companies in the food chain to conclude long-term contracts with their the producers, and to help their farmers in correctly implementing integrated pest management practices, including by offering the necessary financial and technical support for farmers and growers to ensure that they can swiftly transition towards agro-ecological and organic farming practices, while being sure that they will receive a fair price for their efforts;












25.


Recognises that, while nitrogen emissions can lead to the eutrophication of semi-natural grassland and damage pollinator habitats, fertilisers are crucial for soil fertility and food security; underlines the need to strengthen action to balance nitrogen emissions;












26.


Regrets the lack of coordinated efforts to address light pollution, with some countries adopting national policies and others taking no action; encourages the setting of metrics that record and report on light pollution levels in the EU and the Member States in order to allow pollution reduction targets to be set against agreed on baselines, and to monitor progress; encourages the use of Copernicus services to establish a diagnosis of the current light pollution in the EU;












27.


Underlines the need to incorporate the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services into urban planning practices in order to protect pollinator populations, contribute to their diversity and create new and well-connected habitats;












28.


Calls on the Member States to monitor pollinator populations in urban areas, collect data on pollinator health and develop evidence-based strategies for their conservation; encourages the sharing of best practices and experiences among cities to create a network for urban pollinator conservation efforts;












29.


Emphasises the benefits of green roofs, vertical gardens and sustainable urban agriculture practices in providing habitats for pollinators and contributing to urban resilience and improved quality of life for city residents;












30.


Underlines, in this regard, the strong interconnection between the revised EU Pollinators Initiative and upholding and improving nature protection under the EU Birds Directive (24), the Habitats Directive (25) and the proposed EU nature restoration law when it comes to achieving a trend reversal in pollinator decline, in particular through the alignment of national nature restoration measures with the relevant policies under the EU Pollinators Initiative; calls for measures to address biodiversity loss outside protected areas; notes that restoring nature and ecosystems in protected areas does not make up for the continued loss of biodiversity and degradation of ecosystems in other areas;












31.


Is alarmed by ongoing habitat loss and fragmentation and their adverse effects on many pollinating insects; welcomes, in this respect, the Commission’s commitment to prepare a blueprint for a network of ecological corridors for pollinators, or ‘Buzz Lines’, jointly with the Member States, to connect existing natural areas using ecological corridors and allow species to move in search of food, shelter and nesting and reproduction sites; underlines the necessity of agreeing on a plan of action with deadlines and calls on the Member States to commit to implementing it;












32.


Stresses that linear infrastructure in the EU should be designed, managed and adapted so as to minimise negative effects in the form of habitat fragmentation, and must not undermine the integrity of the ‘Buzz Line’ network;












33.


Calls on the Member States to promote species diversity in cultivated arable crops and to preserve natural habitats for pollinators to the greatest extent possible;






Monitoring and indicators










34.


Highlights the essential role of farmers in maintaining habitats for pollinators and fostering sustainable agricultural practices that prioritise the well-being of these crucial species and contribute to the preservation of biodiversity; highlights, in this regard, the agricultural practices already being carried out at local level to protect pollinator habitats; underlines, at the same time, the importance of an independent network of advisers to promote the dissemination and effective implementation of pollinator-friendly measures;












35.


Encourages the planting of draws and the restoration of multi-species orchards, which are a source of pollen and nectar;












36.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to develop a standardised EU pollinator monitoring scheme to improve the gathering of data about the pollinator population; underlines that the granularity of the collected data should enable the detection of annual population changes, which are meaningful for policy actions and conservation measures; calls on the Member States to support training and capacity building in order to rapidly obtain the human resources required for pollinator monitoring;












37.


Welcomes, in this regard, the initial expert proposal for an EU pollinator monitoring scheme (26) as the basis for developing more advanced options; calls on the Commission to continue this technical work in close collaboration with the Member States, with a view to producing a set of costed options for an EU pollinator monitoring scheme; considers that each option should be accompanied by an implementation roadmap that outlines technical capacity gaps in the Member States and avenues to swiftly address them;












38.


Calls on the Commission to verify that the strategic planning tools for the management of Natura 2000 sites, including the prioritised action frameworks, include requirements for the protection of wild pollinators, and to assess the relevant measures proposed by the Member States in the prioritised action frameworks;












39.


Believes that high-quality annual monitoring, underpinned, inter alia, by an adequately high number of sites in each Member State to enable the detection of changes in the abundance and species richness of various pollinator groups, assessed at least every three years, is essential to support and improve decision-making processes, ensure more effective public spending and increase accountability and understanding on the impact of policies and legislation;












40.


Appreciates the Commission’s commitment jointly with the Member States and the EEA, to finalise the EU-wide mapping of key pollinator areas by 2025 and the Red List assessments for key insect pollinator groups by 2024; acknowledges the Commission’s efforts in developing and coordinating the implementation of species action plans; calls on the Member States to swiftly implement the necessary conservation actions at all relevant governance levels and to support experts and stakeholders; encourages the Member States, furthermore, to improve current conservation efforts in protected areas and to consider establishing new protected areas for butterflies, moths and other wild pollinators, especially Red Listed species;












41.


Applauds the work and results of the past and ongoing EU initiatives focusing on the monitoring of species, the state of habitats, the pollutants present in the environment and awareness raising; calls on the Commission, in this regard, to establish a legal basis and lasting financial framework for the following initiatives: SPRING (Strengthening pollinator recovery through indicators and monitoring), INSIGNIA (Environmental monitoring of pollutants via honeybees), EMBAL (European Monitoring of Biodiversity in Agricultural Landscapes), LUCAS (Land Use and Coverage Area frame Survey), STING (Science and Technology for Pollinating Insects) and eLTER (Long-Term Ecosystem Research in Europe), and to facilitate the integration of EMBAL and INSIGNIA, as well as the future EU pollinator monitoring scheme, into the eLTER framework; underlines that monitoring the drivers of pollinator decline needs to be continuously performed over long periods of time;












42.


Repeats its call for the integration of a specific pollinator indicator into the common agricultural policy, to evaluate the policy’s impact on both pollinators and pollination, by 2026;






Resources, knowledge-sharing and capacity building










43.


Calls on the Commission to assess new avenues for financing the measures needed to meet the objectives of the EU Pollinators Initiative, including by setting up a nature fund within the new 2027+ multiannual financial framework; underlines that the initiative must mobilise sufficient additional financial resources and secure commitments and investments at the EU and Member State levels on a scale and with an urgency that will contribute to halting pollinator losses by 2030; calls on the Commission to propose a dedicated budget line to support systematic biodiversity monitoring, indicators and reporting on progress, trends and pressures across all Member States;












44.


Calls on the relevant Commission Directorates-General and on the EEA, the European Food Safety Authority and the European Chemicals Agency to intensify cooperation to fill the identified data and policy gaps; believes that the Commission, EU agencies and Member States need to improve collection, sharing, management and generation of new biodiversity data in order to improve policymaking and ensure policy coherence at all levels;












45.


Calls on the Commission to set up appropriate governance and monitoring mechanisms, including assigning clear responsibilities to the Commission departments involved in policy areas relevant to wild pollinators;












46.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to support research to better understand the impact of substances with endocrine disrupting properties on pollinators, and to implement policies based on the latest scientific evidence on these impacts;












47.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to support research to better understand the interactions, including in terms of competition, between honeybee colonies and native/wild pollinators;












48.


Underlines the importance of protecting pollinators not only in the EU, but worldwide, and calls on the Commission to promote relevant action;












49.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to actively engage in bee diplomacy as a foreign policy tool to promote the inclusion of pollinators in international policies, with a view to supporting activities that contribute to the environmental and social resilience of developing countries and vulnerable groups;












50.


Recognises the importance of citizen scientists, including farmers, and taxonomists, who need to be supported further so that they can strengthen their expertise, cultivate good practices and share them across the Member States; acknowledges, at the same time, the findings of a study commissioned by the Commission (27) and published in December 2022 showing that expertise tends to be particularly poor in the countries with the richest biodiversity and noting that taxonomists are predominantly male and ageing; recalls that one of the obstacles to the effective implementation of citizen science programmes is the lack of taxonomic expertise on data processing and a lack of taxonomic tools and calls on the Commission and the Member States to address these shortcomings; appreciates the successful work of the Pollinator Ambassadors in raising awareness and motivating citizens and businesses;












51.


Urges the Commission and the Member States to provide small grant schemes to experts, civil society representatives and individuals to support local and regional actions for pollinators and to enable an EU platform for wild pollinators to be set up to coordinate their efforts and facilitate knowledge-sharing on a long-term basis;












52.


Highlights the potential of creating local networks and knowledge-sharing platforms where farmers can exchange best practices and contribute to the conservation of pollinators, which are invaluable species, ensuring the resilience of our agricultural systems and food security;












53.


Calls on the Commission to include all key groups of pollinating insects in the taxonomic platform developed by the Orbit and Taxo-fly projects, and to ensure and improve its functionality by developing tools for taxonomists and citizen scientists;












54.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure coordination and the accessibility of all necessary means to maintain and improve the European Butterfly Monitoring Schemes across the EU, including by increasing butterfly transects, monitoring rare and threatened species, using real-time reporting technology, and providing long-term financial assistance to their appointed coordinators; calls on the Commission and the Member States to launch and maintain a public EU database that will be required for the future EU pollinator monitoring scheme;












55.


Calls on the Commission and the Member States to support education programmes for beekeepers and agronomy students in order to build capacity for the management and promotion of biodiversity and pollination as an ecosystem service; stresses that incentive systems are necessary to support measures that benefit pollinator populations and that farmers and other land users should be financially supported;












56.


Underlines the importance of open, constructive and genuine dialogue among EU institutions and representatives of relevant authorities at all governance levels, experts, beekeepers and citizens, as it can pave the way towards new partnerships, actions and commitments and stronger engagement, such as during the 2021 EU Pollinator Week: A New Deal for Pollinators; believes that knowledge-sharing, awareness raising, capacity building and engaging with all relevant stakeholders, citizen scientists and young people in pollinator protection is a precondition for the successful implementation of this initiative;
°
° °












57.


Instructs its President to forward this resolution to Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.






(1)  
            OJ C 148, 28.4.2023, p. 1.

(2)  
            OJ C 255, 29.6.2021, p. 29.

(3)  
            OJ C 349, 29.9.2023, p. 173.

(4)  
            OJ C 411, 27.11.2020, p. 48.

(5)  
            OJ C 67, 8.2.2022, p. 25.

(6)  
            OJ C 184, 5.5.2022, p. 2.

(7)  
            OJ C 202, 28.5.2021, p. 49.

(8)  Garibaldi et al., ‘Wild Pollinators Enhance Fruit Set of Crops Regardless of Honey Bee Abundance’
            Science, Vol. 339, Issue 6127, 29 March 2013, pp. 1608-1611.

(9)  Bartholomée, O. et al., ‘Pollinator presence in orchards depends on landscape-scale habitats more than in-field flower resources’, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Vol. 293, 2020.

(10)  Saunders, M. and Luck, G., ‘Interaction effects between local flower richness and distance to natural woodland on pest and beneficial insects in apple orchards’, Agricultural and Forest Entomology, Vol. 20, No 2, 2017, pp. 279-87.

(11)  Geldmann, J. and González-Varo, J., ‘Conserving honeybees does not help wildlife: High densities of managed honeybees can harm populations of wild pollinators’. Sciencemag, Vol. 359, No 6374, 2018, pp. 392-3.

(12)  International Union for Conservation of Nature Species Survival Commission – Hoverfly Specialist Group / Conservation Planning Specialist Group, ‘European Hoverflies: Moving from Assessment to Conservation Planning’. Conservation Planning Specialist Group, Apple Valley, MN, USA, 2022.

(13)  European Court of Auditors, Special Report 15/2020, ‘Protection of wild pollinators in the EU — Commission initiatives have not borne fruit’, 2020.

(14)  EEA, ‘The European environment – state and outlook 2020 – Knowledge for transition to a sustainable Europe’, Publications Office of the EU, Luxembourg, 2019.

(15)  Eurostat, ‘
            Accounting for ecosystems and their services in the European Union – 2021 edition
            ’, Publications Office of the EU, Luxembourg, 2021.

(16)  Potts S. et al., ‘Global pollinator declines: trends, impacts and drivers’, Trends in Ecology & Evolution, Vol. 25, 2010, pp. 345–353.

(17)  Gallai N. et al., ‘Economic valuation of the vulnerability of world agriculture confronted with pollinator decline’, Ecological Economics, Vol. 68, 2009, pp. 810–821.

(18)  Klein, A.M. et al., ‘Importance of pollinators in changing landscapes for world crops’, Proceedings of the Royal Society, Vol. 274, No 1608, 2007, pp. 303-13.

(19)  Eilers, E. et al., ‘Contribution of Pollinator-Mediated Crops to Nutrients in the Human Food Supply’, PLOS ONE, Vol. 6, No 6, 2011.

(20)  Smith, M. et al., ‘Effects of decreases of animal pollinators on human nutrition and global health: a modelling analysis’, The Lancet, Vol. 386, No 10007, 2015, pp. 1964–1972.

(21)  Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market and repealing Council Directives 79/117/EEC and 91/414/EEC (OJ L 309, 24.11.2009, p. 1).

(22)  Regulation (EU) No 528/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2012 concerning the making available on the market and use of biocidal products (OJ L 167, 27.6.2012, p. 1).

(23)  European Parliament resolution of 23 October 2019 on the draft Commission regulation amending Regulation (EU) No 546/2011 as regards the assessment of the impact of plant protection products on honeybees (OJ C 202, 28.5.2021, p. 49).

(24)  Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds (OJ L 20, 26.1.2010, p. 7).

(25)  Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7).

(26)  Potts, S. et al., ‘
            Proposal for an EU Pollinator Monitoring Scheme
            ’, Joint Research Centre, Publications Office of the EU, Luxembourg, 2020.

(27)  European Commission, Directorate-General for Environment, ‘European Red List of insect taxonomists’, Publications Office of the EU, 2022.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/4227/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)