EU soil directive must be left buried, says MEP

The Spanish Presidency of the EU must not dig up previously buried proposals to regulate soil, Emma McClarkin MEP has warned.

A soil directive was blocked last year by an alliance of countries, including the UK.  Yet the EU Spanish Presidency has begun to discuss this soil directive again, ignoring the amendments that were made last year.

It is claimed that this EU directive on soil will help prevent pollution, tackle degradation and protect soil functions. However, East Midlands MEP Emma McClarkin believes that soil is already heavily regulated by legislation including directives on nitrates and ground water and in existing cross compliance regulations.

Miss McClarkin also considers the directive as overly prescriptive by trying to set out a harmonised approach to protecting soil, without taking into account the diverse variety of soil across the EU.

Emma McClarkin comments:

“This is a terrible piece of legislation. Soil is already covered by a number of directives and aspects of the Common Agricultural Policy. This directive is just another layer of bureaucracy. 

“Soil in Finland is very different from soil in Greece, yet these proposals would apply the same rules on all soil with little consideration for diverse climatic conditions.

“It was thought this directive had been blocked for good but now that the Spanish are trying to revive it, we need the British government to dig in.

“Spain has a clear interest in soil quality given its problem of desertification. However, British farmers take great pride in their soil and will only be burdened with extra costs and red tape by this directive.”