The direct drivers of biodiversity loss are changes in land- and sea-use, overexploitation, climate change, pollution and invasive alien species. Many activities, such as agriculture, fisheries, urban expansion and trade, contribute to multiple drivers. Addressing the impact of these drivers on biodiversity requires cooperation between different EU policy domains, as well as strong international cooperation because climate change and trade are global issues, and invasive species cross borders.

Many EU-BDS 2030 measures for protection and restoration (pillars 1 and 2) described in previous sections also address these direct drivers, for instance via targets and incentives for restoring carbon-rich ecosystems including forests and peatlands, and enabling climate- and nature-friendly farming practices. In addition, other EU policy domains are dedicated to addressing specific drivers of biodiversity loss such as climate change and pollution.

Intensive agriculture exacerbates several drivers of biodiversity loss, in particular land-use change, climate change and pollution. While 77% of the EU budget for biodiversity over the 2014-2020 period came from the common agricultural policy (CAP), this contribution did not halt the decline of farmland biodiversity, and efforts to enable nature-friendly agriculture have been stepped up. Targets for nature-friendly agriculture under pillar 2 include reducing pollution from chemical pesticides and fertilisers, expanding organic farming and high-diversity landscape features that enhance carbon sequestration, increased agro-forestry and urban greening. Most of these targets are also part of the Farm to Fork Strategy (2021), which aims to make EU food systems more sustainable. The new Common Agricultural Policy (2023–2027) is raising the green ambitions of EU agriculture, in order to bring them in line with environmental and climate legislation. It is seen as a key tool to reaching the ambitions of the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity Strategies. Details on biodiversity and agriculture will appear in forthcoming pages on that topic.

Pesticide pollution has short-term effects on directly exposed organisms as well as long-term effects on biodiversity from changes in habitat and food chains. It is specifically addressed in pillar 2 in tandem with the Zero Pollution Action Plan (ZPAP, 2021) and the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (2020). Key commitments under the EU-NRP and ZPAP include halving by 2030 the use and risk of chemical pesticides and the use of the more hazardous ones. In 2022 the Commission adopted flagship legislative proposals to make these commitments for pesticide use legally binding, including strict new rules to ensure environmentally friendly pest control and a ban on pesticide use in sensitive areas. Excessive fertiliser use affects biodiversity through eutrophication of water bodies and soil acidification due to nutrient runoff (mainly nitrogen and phosphorus). The EU-NRP and ZPAP commit to reducing pollution from fertiliser use by halving nutrient losses, thereby reducing the use of fertiliser by 20%. ZPAP targets also include the reduction by 25% of EU ecosystems where pollution threatens biodiversity, by 50% plastic litter at sea, and by 30% microplastic release into the environment. Further details on the impacts of pollution on biodiversity and health, as well as the relevant EU policies, are available here.

Apart from EU-BDS, changes in land-use, overexploitation and climate change are influenced by forest strategy. Changes in land-use are also influenced by EU Regional and Urban Policy, whose specific objectives include environmental protection, a low carbon economy and climate change adaptation. EU action to protect forests needs strengthening, in particular to tackle biodiversity and climate change, combat illegal logging and better focus rural development forestry on biodiversity and climate change. These challenges are addressed under the New EU Forest Strategy for 2030 and the Proposal for a regulation on deforestation-free products (2021), which aims to guarantee to EU citizens that the listed products they buy, use and consume do not contribute to global deforestation and forest degradation. The regulation was adopted in May 2023. Overexploitation is further regulated by EU legislation on wildlife trade. Most of EU action on wildlife trade derives from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). In addition, the EU prohibits trade in seal products and regulates hunting and trapping methods to ensure they are as humane as possible. CITES is implemented in the EU through the EU Wildlife Trade Regulations.

The fisheries industry contributes to changes in sea-use and to overexploitation and pollution of marine resources. The EU-BDS 2030 emphasises the sustainable harvest of marine resources and zero tolerance for illegal exploitative practices. Its EU Nature Restoration Plan for 2030 commits to substantially reducing negative impacts on sensitive marine species and habitats, including on the seabed through fishing and extraction activities. The MSFD implementation report (2020) pointed to the persisting need to tackle predominant pressures such as overfishing and unsustainable fishing practices, plastic litter, excess nutrients, underwater noise and others types of pollution. These pressures and EU-BDS 2030 commitments are being addressed and implemented via initiatives under the Common Fisheries Policy and the ZPAP. The initiative (2021) for a new action plan to conserve fisheries resources and protect marine ecosystems (pending) aims to address the by-catch of sensitive species and adverse impacts on sensitive habitats through technical measures such as area closures, gear changes and mitigation measures for sensitive species. In line with the Deep-sea access regulation (2016), the Commission adopted (2022) an implementing regulation closing 87 areas to all bottom fishing gears in the EU waters of the North-East Atlantic.

Climate change is of course also addressed directly via EU climate policy. The European Climate Law commits the EU to climate-neutrality by 2050 and sets an immediate target of at least 55% net reduction in GHG emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. It aims to achieve this mainly by cutting emissions, investing in green technologies and protecting the natural environment. The new EU adaptation strategy (2021), the Climate Law, and the New EU Forest Strategy for 2030, as well as other EU strategies addressing climate and biodiversity identify nature-based solutions as key win-win solutions. Details on EU policies addressing biodiversity and climate are available here.

Pillar 2 of EU-BDS 2030 includes stepping up the implementation of the EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation (2014) and other relevant legislation in order to minimise, and where possible eliminate, the introduction and establishment of alien species in the EU environment. Its EU-NRP commits to reducing by 50% the number of species on the European red list that are threatened by invasive alien species.