30X30, the global initiative to protect at least 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030 adopted at the UN Biodiversity Summit COP15 in December 2022, is critical in tackling the climate and nature crisis.
So how is the UK getting on?
The UK Government has just released its 30X30 plan for land in England – this target is UK wide but for Wales and Scotland the plans are the responsibility of the devolved administrations. Perhaps unsurprisingly for this administration, despite containing some good content about the power of collaborative working across government, land managers, farmers and communities, and an understanding that nature is an essential foundation for future economic growth, the plan is, unfortunately, too little, too late.
What is missing:
- A real sense of urgency is missing, with less than 4 years left to meet the target, England is a long way off. Wildlife and Countryside Link’s report from 2023 calculated the amount of land currently meeting the 30X30 criteria as only 3%, and little progress has been made since.
- The funding is just not there to make this happen. The government has committed £37m for Protected Landscapes (areas expected to play a key role in meeting the target) to invest in 30×30, a drop in the ocean of the estimated £56 Billion funding gap for UK nature. The plan is relying far too heavily on private finance and philanthropy to fill the gap.
- National Parks and Protected Landscapes are expected to make up around 50% of the target on land. But the report delivers little to help this be achieved. As discussed at EOCA’s recent “Future of National Parks” event at London Climate Action Week, our National Parks need thorough reform of their governance and powers to really deliver for nature. The government must also remove threats to National Park protections, such as their recent calls to remove the duty of public bodies to ‘seek to further’ the purposes of Protected Landscapes.
- The criteria by which land is measured suitable for 30X30 is narrow, focussed on conservation value. There must be a commitment for this land to also play a role in connecting people to nature. Value for nature does not solely lie in biodiversity, but in the ability for people to access and enjoy these places, and in turn be part of society’s desire to protect them.
It is clear that with a new Prime Minister and cabinet incoming, we must keep the pressure on the UK Government to take bolder action for nature.
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