5.2. Protecting the environment, sustainably managing natural resources, water, biodiversity and ecosystems

Societies face a major challenge to establish a sustainable balance between human needs and the environment. Environmental resources, including water, air, biomass, fertile soils, biodiversity and ecosystems, and the services they provide underpin the functioning of the European and global economy and quality of life. Global business opportunities related to natural resources are expected to amount to over EUR 2 trillion by 2050 Estimates developed by PricewaterhouseCoopers for "sustainability-related global business opportunities in natural resources (including energy, forestry, food and agriculture, water and metals)" and WBCSD (2010) Vision 2050: The New Agenda for Business, World Business Council for Sustainable Development: Geneva, URL: http://www.wbcsd.org/web/projects/BZrole/Vision2050-FullReport_Final.pdf . Despite this, ecosystems in Europe and globally are being degraded beyond nature's ability to regenerate them, and environmental resources are being over-exploited and even destroyed. For example, 1000 km^(2) of some of the most fertile soils and valuable ecosystems are lost every year in the Union, while a quarter of fresh water is wasted. Continuing these patterns is not an option. Research must contribute to reversing the trends that damage the environment and to ensuring that ecosystems continue to provide the resources, goods and services that are essential for well-being, economic prosperity and sustainable development. The aim of this activity is therefore to provide knowledge and tools for the management and protection of natural resources, achieving a sustainable balance between limited resources and the present and future needs of society and the economy. To achieve this, research and innovation will focus on the following: Human action may trigger changes in the environment that are irreversible and which alter the character of ecosystems and their biodiversity. It is vital to anticipate these risks by assessing, monitoring and forecasting the impact of human activities on the environment, including land use change, and environmental changes on human well-being. Research on marine (from coastal zones to the deep sea including the sustainability of marine resources), polar, fresh-water, terrestrial and urban ecosystems, including groundwater dependent ecosystems, will improve our understanding of the complex interactions between natural resources and social, economic, and ecological systems, including natural tipping points, and the resilience, or fragility, of human and biological systems. It will examine how biodiversity and ecosystems function and react to anthropogenic impacts, how they can be restored, and how this will affect economies and human well-being. It will also investigate solutions for addressing resource challenges in the European and international context. It will contribute to policies and practices that ensure that social and economic activities operate within the limits of the sustainability and adaptability of ecosystems and biodiversity. Freshwater availability and quality have become global issues with far-reaching economic and social implications. With ever-growing demand for different and often conflicting uses (e.g. agriculture, industry, recreational activities, public services, ecosystems and landscape maintenance, environmental restoration and enhancement), increased resource vulnerability exacerbated by climate and global change, urbanisation, pollution and over-exploitation of freshwater resources, maintaining and improving water quality and availability, and mitigating the impact of human activities on fresh water ecosystems is becoming a critical challenge for the users of water in various sectors as well as for aquatic ecosystems. Research and innovation will address these pressures and provide integrated strategies, tools, technologies and innovative solutions to meet current and future needs. It will aim to develop appropriate water management strategies, improve water quality, cope with imbalances between water demand and availability or supply at different levels and scale, close the water cycle, promote sustainable end-user behaviour and address water-related risks whilst sustaining the integrity, structure and functioning of the aquatic ecosystems in line with the prevailing Union policies. Social, economic and governance systems still need to address both resource depletion and the damage to ecosystems. Research and innovation will underpin policy decisions needed to manage natural resources and ecosystems so as to avoid, or adapt to, disruptive climate and environmental change and to promote institutional, economic, behavioural and technological changes that ensure sustainability. Research will thus underpin the development of systems to value biodiversity and ecosystem services, including understanding the stock of natural capital and the flow of ecosystems services. Emphasis will be put on critical policy-relevant ecosystems and ecosystem services, such as fresh water, seas and oceans (including coastal areas), forests, polar regions, air quality, biodiversity, land use and soil. The resilience of societies and ecosystems to pollutants and pathogens and to catastrophic events, including natural hazards (such as seismic and volcanic, flooding and droughts) and forest fires, will be supported through improving capacities for forecasting, early warning and assessing vulnerabilities and impacts, including the multi-risk dimension. Research and innovation will thus provide support for environmental and resource efficiency policies, and options for effective evidence-based governance within safe operating limits. Innovative ways will be developed to increase policy coherence, resolve trade-offs and manage conflicting interests and to improve public awareness of research results and the participation of citizens in decision making.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-04 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.