Swedish strategy for biodiversity and ecosystem services

Our planet has limited resources, and our well-being depends on biodiversity. Ecosystems, plants and animals pay no heed to national borders. The Government is working together with other countries to preserve biodiversity. It is also advancing the work to protect valuable nature and ensure sustainable forestry, agriculture and fisheries throughout the world.

Long-term Swedish nature conservation policy

The Government wants to safeguard economic and inalienable values in biodiversity and ecosystem services. The long-term strategy for biodiversity and ecosystem services presents the work on strengthening biodiversity and safeguarding ecosystem services such as water purification, production of food and fibres, and recreation and outdoor activities.

The strategy covers everything from the protection of land and the sea, measures for endangered plant and animal species, genetic diversity, natural and cultural environment considerations in land and water use to increased cooperation with industry. The proposals in the bill will help achieve the Swedish environmental quality objectives, the generational goal, the targets in the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020, and the international Aichi Biodiversity Targets within the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Efforts being made to show the value of ecosystem services and biodiversity

Work to give visibility to the value of ecosystem services and biodiversity will still have high priority. This primarily involves integrating their values into political and economic policy positions and other decisions. For example, ecosystem services must be included in environmental accounting, planning and decisions on land use by public authorities, the design of economic instruments and the development of business models, innovations and standards. The Government also considers that properly designed compensatory measures can be an important tool for strengthening biodiversity and ecosystem services.

The Government wants to make it easier for companies to assess their dependency on ecosystem services and make it easier for investors to get information about a company’s full value. Business opportunities that are directly linked to ecosystem services are found in such sectors as agriculture, forestry, the pharmaceutical industry, fisheries and tourism.

It is a major challenge for Sweden to live up to the target of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, which involves the countries cumulatively ensuring long-term protection for at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas by 2020. To achieve this goal, the Government plans to increase protection of biodiversity, protect more natural forests and establish more marine reserves.