The EU birds and habitats directives : For nature and people in Europe

The EU birds and habitats directives form the cornerstones of Europe’s legislation on nature conservation. These Directives represent the most ambitious and large-scale initiative ever undertaken to conserve Europe’s natural heritage. The overall objective of the two directives is to ensure that the species and habitat types they protect are maintained, or restored, to a favourable conservation status throughout their natural range within the EU. It is therefore more than just halting their further decline or disappearance; the aim is to ensure that the species and habitats recover sufficiently to enable them to flourish over the long-term