Responsible use of the earth's resources
Our use of the earth's resources has major consequences for biodiversity. Today, six out of nine planetary boundaries have been exceeded – this means that human activity threatens the planet's environmental condition.
World Overshoot Day already fell on March 16 2024 in Denmark. Way too early in the year and two weeks earlier than last year. If everyone lived as we do in Denmark, we would need more than four earths.
It requires action. Circular economy is a crucial lever and fortunately we see many business models emerging which are based on circular design, reuse, repair, sharing and use of recycled materials. But there is a need to speed up the transition. A decisive move is to use public procurement strategically to create demand and scale in the circular solutions.
We must ensure help for action in the companies' value chains - how do you get started in the best and most efficient way to ensure biodiversity? We must inspire a close interaction between stakeholders and contribute with practical means to accelerate development towards more sustainable value chains, among other things by taking responsibility and doing something directly for and with those who have the genetic resources – because through responsible trade, companies contribute.
DI has the following suggestions:
- Protect the world's genetic resources
- Stop deforestation through efforts in the value chains
- Establish partnerships in developing countries with vulnerable nature
- Biodiversity must be able o be measured, valued and communicated
- Sustainable activities and development of renewable energy at sea.
Protect the world's genetic resources
Background
The genetic resources from plants, animals, fungi and other microorganisms are the world's treasury and have value for society, for the individual citizen and for companies. If access to genetic resources deteriorates, companies' future opportunities for developing products - this could be food or medicine - also deteriorate. For companies to continue to use genetic resources, we must take care of them in a balanced, multilateral agreement, where companies can take their share of responsibility in contributing to biodiversity and fair profit sharing and trade.
Reommendations
DI recommends that:
- COP16 work towards ensuring that an eventual DSI benefit sharing mechanism balances with the needs of research and innovation urgently needed for a green transition, in accordance with the §9 principles established and agreed under the COP15
- Such a mechanism needs to be accompanied with legal certainty for companies requiring countries to accept that there are no additional bilateral obligations on the same DSI to ensure a “level playing field”.
- COP16 aims at paving the way for standardizing rules regarding access to genetic resources in a multilateral setup also enabling SMEs to access and use.
Stop deforestation through efforts in the value chains
Background
Global deforestation has major consequences for climate, nature and biodiversity. Deforestation deprives animals and plants of their habitats and is at the same time one of the biggest sources of CO2 emissions.
The EU regulation against deforestation (EUDR) requires that the production of soya, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, natural rubber and wood (and certain products thereof) must take place without clearing or degrading forests. At the same time, the EUDR means a significant tightening of documentation requirements for the purchase, sale and export of products that often have long and complex value chains that start with small farmers.
It is difficult for industries heavily affected by the EUDR, such as the food and wood industry, to meet the extensive documentation requirements for e.g. full traceability right down to the batch level. It is crucial that the companies are guided as best as possible towards a proportional phasing in of the requirements that apply from 30 December 2024. In this way, Danish business can continue to contribute positively via trade in areas close to vulnerable forests in the manufacturing countries.
Reommendations
DI recommends the government to ensure a cost-effective and transparent implementation of EU legislation against deforestation by:
- ensuring timely guidance for companies' implementation and proportional and harmonized interpretation of requirements and controls in relation to the EUDR, so that companies' compliance efforts can be focused where there really is the risk of deforestation and loss of biodiversity.
- fast track the release of risk assessments of countries/regions, on which companies can scale their due diligence work
- accelerate cooperation with manufacturing countries to build competences for EUDR compliance, particularly aimed at value chains with a large proportion of "small holder" producers, so that they can and will continue to sell products to the EU.
Establish partnerships in developing countries with vulnerable nature
Background
It is important that we, from the Danish side, help support the manufacturing countries' authorities, businesses and especially smaller producers, so that they can comply with the upcoming reporting requirements on biodiversity.
Reporting requirements (CSRD) on biodiversity must not become a hindrance for doing business with the Global South. To that extent, the presence of Danish companies and partnerships with developing countries help to drive positive changes in the individual countries, also for biodiversity.
Recommendations
DI recommends that:
- DANIDA earmarks EUR 13,5 million annually from development aid for biodiversity and nature initiatives. The focus should be on partnerships and training of producers and sub-suppliers in the manufacturing countries with which Danish companies engage in trade, and where biodiversity is a challenge.
The pool must ensure help to preserve and develop the positive impact that Danish trade continues to make in vulnerable areas and must have a particular focus on supporting companies' partnerships with actors in the manufacturing countries regarding knowledge, contributions, calculation methods and documentation in relation to biodiversity.
Biodiversity must be able to be measured, valued and communicated
Background
Data is in short supply when companies must calculate and document biodiversity footprints. International standards are under development, such as Science Based Targets for Nature, Taskforce for Nature related Financial Disclosures, etc. But there is a great need for operational tools that can gather biodiversity measurements into simple expressions of impact – just like for climate, where there is a standardized measurement unit such as CO2e. This makes it difficult, for example, to calculate a baseline, which is needed to be able to assess a development.
For it to be attractive to contribute to increased biodiversity and nature restoration, it is crucial that a real value is also placed on nature. So far, use of nature has been "free", but with nature under pressure both on land and in the water environment, including a great need for the restoration of nature and ecosystems, a new calculator is needed.
By valuing nature, e.g. companies' efforts are better targeted to the benefit of both companies and society as such.
In addition to valuation, companies need clear guidance so that they can confidently communicate about biodiversity initiatives.
Recommendations
DI recommends that:
- a tool is being developed that can give direction to the work of SMEs, including measurement and prioritization of biodiversity efforts. It must, among other things, build on international standards such as Science Based Targets for Nature and the Taskforce for Nature related Financial Disclosures, which are used by larger companies.
- research effort is increased for a better valuation of nature and its ecosystems, etc. to create incentives and value for biodiversity efforts. The research must contribute to companies' efforts for biodiversity and ecosystems being recognized and credited in the long term.
- authorities contribute to clear examples of how companies can communicate their positive contributions to nature and biodiversity.
Sustainable activities and development of renewable energy at sea
Background
We need a sea with good biodiversity, so that we can continue to draw on the many ecosystem services, recreational pleasures and business that the sea provides.
There is pressure on the sea's biodiversity – seven out of eight of the nature types in the sea that must be protected are in a very unfavorable state. None of our waters can currently meet the EU's objective of good ecological status by 2027 at the latest.
There is a large interplay of interests at sea, and therefore the environmental management of the sea has also been fragmented. There is broad agreement that handling the many interests at sea requires a new, broader approach with an eye for the entire ecosystem, which is incorporated into a marine strategy, marine plan and regulation of various marine-related activities on land and at sea.
Marine management must ensure a balanced marine environment, while the many activities at sea such as expansion of the necessary RE and the maritime industries can continue to coexist.
Recommendations
DI recommends that
- maritime planning to a greater extent should apply the principles of "multifunctional land use". Thus, several of the objectives that the marine plan is supposed to achieve can be included in a coordinated planning and concrete realization of the individual projects and reservations of areas in the marine plan.
- clear guidelines are established for how to use an ecosystem-based approach in the management of rules, and how compensation or replacement nature can be included and handled in relation to activities at sea.
- a market-driven scheme for offshore wind is established. It must contribute to the laying out of areas where it is possible to develop renewable energy and energy islands that fulfill the 30 per cent. objective cf. the Marine Plan.