As the European Parliament paves the way for swift approval of relaxing some environmental requirements in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the period 2023-2027, NGOs are mobilizing against the decision, reports Euractiv.

Urgent procedures

As previously announced, the European Parliament has approved the use of an "urgent procedure" to expedite the adoption of the European Commission's simplification package for certain environmental rules of the CAP, aimed at easing their burden on farmers.

In an attempt to quell the recent wave of protests across the Union, on March 15, the EU executive proposed two regulations providing for amendments to six of the nine Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions (GAEC) standards on which CAP payments are based, giving member states more flexibility in policy implementation.

The package consisted of a delegated regulation concerning GAEC 1 regarding permanent pastures and another legislative act.

Over one hundred Members of the European Parliament (104) from several political parties (Socialists and Democrats, Greens, Left, Renew) have taken action to prevent the rapid adoption of changes to GAEC 1, forcing a vote at the next plenary session, on April 22-25.

But MEPs agreed on Thursday to expedite the process for the rest of the package, (432 votes in favor, 155 against, and 13 abstentions), heading for a vote to approve the new rules in the same session.

It will then be up to the Council to officially adopt the measures, which could come into effect by June 2024.

NGOs mobilize

Environmental NGOs and consumer organizations have criticized the measures presented by the EU executive, stating that they miss the mark.

"The removal of the last environmental protections is a poisoned gift to farmers," said Greenpeace's European agriculture director, Marco Contiero, after a protest in front of Parliament on Thursday, adding that the changes will make farmers more vulnerable to climate change "doing nothing to address their precarious economic situation."

Several organizations have accused EU institutions of disregarding democratic principles by rushing to approve the package.

"No necessary impact assessment or adequate consultation, sufficient in time (...) has been carried out," reads a letter sent Wednesday by the European peasant organization Via Campesina and the organic farming association IFOAM to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

After the vote, Marilda Dhaskali, agriculture officer at BirdLife in the EU, accused EU parties of "undermining democratically agreed legislation" to secure support ahead of EU elections.

The ongoing pasture controversy

In the first move to address farmers' concerns, the Commission proposed, on March 12, relaxing the rules regarding GAEC 1, which currently mandates the stable maintenance of permanent grasslands.

After the European Parliament's Committee on Agriculture (AGRI) opted for an "early objection" procedure, the amendment was to be approved without debate and vote in Parliament.

However, French MEP Christophe Clergeau, responsible for agriculture and the environment in the Socialists and Democrats group, managed to gather the necessary signatures to force a vote in the period April 22-25.

"I refuse to see the abandonment of greening the CAP in political secrecy," he said in a press release, adding that the environmental requirements were the result of three years of negotiations on the last CAP and should not be abandoned "just a few days."