Leipzig: More than 600 European scientists have asked the European Commission not to reopen the Birds and Habitats Directives, the twin laws behind the Natura 2000 network. Their open letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, reported on 4 November 2026, argues that Europe’s nature rules need enforcement rather than rewriting.

The signatories say the real problems lie elsewhere. They point to weak implementation, insufficient resources and the poor integration of biodiversity into farm, energy and transport policy. Instead of revision, they call for stronger compliance checks and better scientific monitoring.

The letter answers a review of the Birds and Habitats Directives now under way in Brussels. The Commission’s 2027 work programme, published on the same day, lists a review of the nature protection directives. According to the plan, the exercise could lead to legislative or non-legislative measures in the third quarter of 2027.

Valdis Dombrovskis, the Commissioner in charge of simplification, has described the work as a stress test of the nature directives. He said the review will show whether legislative changes are needed or whether the objectives can be met in a simpler way. He also promised that the Commission will stay the course on its climate and biodiversity targets.

Conservation groups remain unconvinced. They fear that a simplification drive, which has already reshaped reporting rules in other fields, could weaken the Birds and Habitats Directives and the species they protect. Farm and forestry lobbies, by contrast, have long pressed for more flexibility on protected sites and on species such as the wolf.

The debate also has a global backdrop. The UN biodiversity conference COP17 in Yerevan closed with the Yerevan Pathway, which calls for faster progress on national strategies, monitoring, finance and the phase-out of harmful subsidies. Governments did not agree binding finance pledges or a firm timetable for cutting those subsidies.

Experts from the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina reviewed the outcome on 10 November. Katrin Böhning-Gaese described the results as mixed. She said the global goal of protecting 30% of land and sea by 2030 remains possible, depending on how governments act over the next four years.

That target depends heavily on Europe’s own legal framework. The Birds and Habitats Directives designate the core of the EU’s protected areas and set the rules for how member states manage them. Any change to their scope or obligations would shape whether the EU can meet its 30% pledge under the Kunming-Montreal framework.

For scientists, the evidence points one way. Studies show that species and habitats improve where member states apply the Birds and Habitats Directives and fund management plans. Where they fail, the cause is usually money, staff and planning rather than legal text.

The Commission now faces a choice between a targeted fix and a deeper reopening. Its stress test will run through 2027, and the 600 signatories want it to conclude that the Birds and Habitats Directives should stay intact while governments finally implement them in full.