By 2 October 2026 the Ministry of the Environment had not sent the National Nature Restoration Plan to the European Commission, for which the deadline was 1 September; it expects to send the draft by the end of October.
By 2 October 2026 the Ministry of the Environment had not sent the National Nature Restoration Plan to the European Commission. The deadline for its submission was 1 September. The plan is based on the European Nature Restoration Regulation, which entered into force in August 2024, and focuses on six areas: agricultural landscape, forest ecosystems, watercourses, greenery in towns and villages, restoration of natural habitats and restoration of pollinator populations.[1][2]
Reasons for the delay
The ministry said it did not manage to submit the plan because of lack of time and high financial cost. If all the proposed measures were to be carried out in such a short time, they would cost, according to the ministry, nine to fifteen billion koruna a year.[1][2]
Minister of the Environment Igor Červený (Motoristé sobě) said that Czechia has not yet sent the plan, like a number of other states, and that this is not a matter of negligence but of an approach linked to the ongoing negotiations on the EU's future financial framework. According to him, the ministry has prepared a plan of measures ranked by urgency, benefit, cost-effectiveness and availability of funding; priority is to go to the measures with the widest benefits for water and the landscape and the measures necessary to meet commitments by 2030.[1][2]
Further steps
The ministry has completed the first draft of the plan and sent it to inter-ministerial consultation. It expects to send it to the European Commission by the end of October 2026. Before the plan is approved next year, it wants to agree with the Commission on how the costs will be covered and on the total amount that will be spent on the plan.[1][2]
The first draft contains measures to restore the landscape for the return of farmland birds and pollinators, to reconnect rivers naturally and create areas for water to spill over, and to retain water in farmland and forests. It also provides for a larger share of greenery in villages and towns.[1][2]
Shadow plan
At the end of August 2026, environmental and conservation organisations presented a Shadow Nature Restoration Plan with 40 measures. In their view, the state plan was under strong pressure from the agricultural and forestry lobby during its preparation, which, according to the organisations, raised doubts about whether effective measures would make it in. The shadow plan provides, for example, for the restoration of 100,000 hectares of natural areas by 2050 and for 2,000 kilometres of grassed runoff pathways and buffer strips by 2030, which are meant to slow the runoff of water from the landscape and prevent soil erosion.[1][2]
Chronology
- — Czechia has not managed to submit its national nature restoration plan to the European Commission; the ministry has not yet sent it. Ekolist.cz Ekonomický deník
Sources
- Ekolist.cz — 2 October 2026
- Ekonomický deník — 2 October 2026