European Commission’s Public Consultation on the EU Nature Directives

The European Union seeks to protect nature and biodiversity through a range of legal instruments for achieving biodiversity commitments at EU and global level, including two cornerstone of EU nature conservation policy and main legal instruments, referred to as the Nature Directives. These are 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, pp. 7-25), the Birds Directive and 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, pp. 7-50), the Habitats Directive, on the basis of which the protected areas that constitute the Natura 2000 Protected Areas Network were designated.

On 12 May 2026, the European Commission announced the launch of an Open public consultation as part of the stress test of the Birds and Habitats Directives, to evaluate their effectiveness. The consultation sought, among other objectives, to assess how effectively Member States have transposed and implemented the Directives in their national legal frameworks, but also whether the Birds and Habitats Directives remain fit to achieve their objectives in a cost-efficient way.

Environmental Organisation iSea participated in the public consultation, highlighting the importance of the Nature Directives and the clear rules they provide towards species protection, their provisions and objectives, while also commenting on which of the objectives of the Birds Directive and Habitats Directive have been met, comparing the costs of their implementation with the associated benefits and highlighting their incoherence with the objectives of other EU policies.

On the other hand, pointing to shortcomings in their transposition and implementation in Greek legislation, also evidenced by the case law of the Greek Council of State. One notable example is Decision No. 1533/2025 of the Fifth Chamber of the Council of State, which found that Directive 2009/147/EC had been inadequately transposed into Greek law, resulting in insufficient protection of wild birds.

Our submission also focused on the excessive administrative burden and unjustified delays on the part of the Greek State, beginning with the planning and designation of the Natura 2000 Network. Furthermore, iSea highlighted the need for open access scientific data available on the species within each protected area.

The Nature Directives play a pivotal role in safeguarding and restoring Europe's natural environment. Public consultations, public awareness, and the active participation of stakeholders, citizens, and the civil society bring us one step closer to ensuring that these Directives are effectively implemented in practice.

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