EUROPEAN COMMISSION
PRESS RELEASE
Brussels, 6 May 2013
Environment: Investing in green infrastructure will bring
multiple returns to nature, society and people
The European Commission adopted today a new strategy for encouraging the use of green
infrastructure, and for ensuring that the enhancement of natural processes becomes a
systematic part of spatial planning. Green Infrastructure is a tried and tested tool that
uses nature to provide ecological, economic and social benefits. Instead of building flood
protection infrastructure, for example, a green infrastructure solution would be to allow a
natural wetland to absorb the excess water from heavy rain.
Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik said: "Building green infrastructure is often a
good investment for nature, for the economy and for jobs. We should provide society with
solutions that work with nature instead of against it, where that makes economic and
environmental sense."
Green infrastructure is often cheaper and more durable than alternatives provided through
conventional civil engineering. Biodiversity-rich parks, green spaces and fresh air corridors
can for example mitigate the negative effects of summer heat waves. In addition to the
health and environmental benefits, green infrastructure also brings multiple social
benefits: it creates jobs and makes cities more appealing places to live and work. And it
allows for wildlife to thrive, even in an urban context.
The strategy launched today will focus on:
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Promoting green infrastructure in the main policy areas such as agriculture,
forestry, nature, water, marine and fisheries, regional and cohesion policy, climate
change mitigation and adaptation, transport, energy, disaster prevention and land use
policies. By the end of 2013, the Commission will develop guidance to show how green
infrastructure can be integrated into the implementation of these policies from 2014 to
2020.
Improving research and data, strengthening the knowledge base and
promoting innovative technologies that support green infrastructure.
Improving access to finance for green infrastructure projects – the Commission
will set up an EU financing facility by 2014 together with the European Investment
Bank to support green infrastructure projects
Supporting EU-level GI projects – by the end of 2015, the Commission will carry
out a study to assess the opportunities for developing an EU-wide network of green
infrastructure.
IP/13/404
Next Steps
By the end of 2017, the Commission will review progress on developing Green
Infrastructure and publish a report on the lessons learnt together with recommendations
for future action.
Background
Europe's landscape is dramatically modified every day by fragmentation, change and
intensification of land use as a result of a persistent human development. Urban expansion
and construction of road and energy infrastructures have degraded and divided valuable
ecosystems affecting their habitats and species and reducing the spatial and functional
coherence of the landscape. Degraded ecosystems tend to have lower species richness
and are unable to offer the same range of services than healthy ecosystems. These
services however have direct value for our economy and investing in green infrastructure
therefore makes economic sense.
There is usually a high return on green infrastructure investments. In an example of a
floodplain restoration project along the river Elbe, Germany, the benefits of shifting dikes,
investing in floodplain-adapted agricultural management and constructing fish ladders
outweighed costs by a factor of up to four. Recreation, flood protection and carbon
benefits, which were not monetised, would increase the value of these calculated benefits
even further.
Green infrastructure urban environmental features like green roofs, parks and greenways
contribute to human health, help address social problems, save energy and ease water
run-off. Better infrastructure planning also contributes to more efficient mobility and
building-policy.
The Communication on Green Infrastructure draws from the EU's Resource Efficiency
Roadmap and the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020, in order to promote investing in and
the use of Green Infrastructure in Europe.
For more information:
Link to the communication and citizen summary:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/ecosystems/index_en.htm
For a Video New Release on Green Infrastructure, see:
http://www.tvlink.org/
See also:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/ecosystems/
Contacts :
Joe Hennon (+32 2 295 35 93)
Monica Westeren (+32 2 299 18 30)
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