(1)

Soil is a vital, limited, non-renewable and irreplaceable resource that is crucial for the economy, the environment and the society.

(2)

Healthy soils are in good chemical, biological and physical condition so that they can provide ecosystem services that are vital to humans and the environment, such as safe, nutritious and sufficient food, biomass, clean water, nutrients cycling, carbon storage and a habitat for biodiversity. Soil is essential to ensuring food security. However, it is estimated that 60 to 70 % of the soils in the Union are deteriorated and continue to deteriorate. [Am. 1]

(3)

Soil degradation is costing the Union several tens of billion euro every year. Soil health is impacting the provision of ecosystem services that have an important economic return. Sustainable management and regeneration of soils therefore Its improvement makes sound economic sense and can significantly increase the price and value of the land in the Union. Moreover, it can take up to 1 000 years to produce just 1 centimetre of top soil, while the degradation process and complete loss of soil can happen rapidly. [Am. 2]

(4)

The European Green Deal (3) has set out an ambitious roadmap to transform the Union into a fair and prosperous society, with a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy, aiming to protect, conserve and enhance the Union’s natural capital, and to protect the health and well-being of citizens. As part of the European Green Deal, the Commission has adopted the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 (4), the Farm to Fork Strategy (5), the Zero Pollution Action Plan (6), the EU Climate Adaptation Strategy (7) and the EU Soil Strategy for 2030 (8).

(5)

The Union is committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (9). Healthy soils contribute directly to the achievement of several SDGs, in particular SDG 2 (zero hunger), SDG 3 (good health and well-being), SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation), SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities), SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production), SDG 13 (climate action) and SDG 15 (life on land). SDG 15.3 aims to combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world by 2030.

(6)

The Union and its Member States, as parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, approved by Council Decision 93/626/EEC (10), agreed at the 15th Conference of the Parties on the ‘Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework’ (GBF) (11) which comprises several action-oriented global targets for 2030 of relevance for soil health. Nature’s contributions to people, including soil health, should be restored, maintained and enhanced.

(7)

The Union and its Member States, as Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), approved by Council Decision 98/216/EC (12), have committed to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought in affected countries. Thirteen Member States (13) have declared themselves as parties affected by desertification under the UNCDD.

(8)

In the context of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) land and soil is considered simultaneously as a source and a sink of carbon. The Union and Member States as parties have committed to promote sustainable management, conservation and enhancement of carbon sinks and reservoirs.

(9)

The EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 states that it is essential to step up efforts to protect soil fertility, reduce soil erosion and increase soil organic matter by adopting sustainable soil management practices. It also states that significant progress is needed on identifying contaminated soil sites, restoring degraded soils, defining the conditions for good ecological status of soils, introducing restoration objectives, and improving the monitoring of soil health.

(10)

The EU Soil Strategy for 2030 sets the long-term vision that by 2050, all EU soil ecosystems are in healthy condition and are thus more resilient. As a key solution, healthy soils contribute to address the EU’s goals of achieving climate neutrality and becoming resilient to climate change, developing a clean and circular (bio)economy, reversing biodiversity loss, safeguarding human health, halting desertification and reversing land degradation.

(11)

Funding is vital to enable a transition to healthy soils. The Multiannual Financial Framework presents several funding opportunities available for the protection, sustainable management and regeneration of soils. A ‘Soil Deal for Europe’ is one of the five EU missions of the Horizon Europe programme and is specifically dedicated to promoting soil health. The Soil Mission is a key instrument for the implementation of this Directive. It aims to lead the transition to healthy soils through funding an ambitious research and innovation programme, establishing a network of 100 living labs and lighthouses in rural and urban areas, advancing the development of a harmonized soil monitoring framework and increasing the awareness of the importance of soil. Other Union programmes that present objectives contributing to healthy soils are the Common Agricultural Policy, the Cohesion Policy funds, the Programme for Environment and Climate Action, the Horizon Europe work programme, the Technical Support Instrument, the Recovery and Resilience Facility and InvestEU. As the goal to have all soils within the Union in healthy status is of common interest, there is a need to increase the mobilisation of resources to support the uptake of sustainable soil management and regenerative practices, including through provision of support from the European Investment Bank via de-risking mechanisms. The Commission should assess the overall financial needs and gaps and if needed put in place for the post-2027 period additional financial resources under the Multiannual Financial Framework and adopt measures to ensure policy coherence in relation to the objectives of this Directive. [Am. 3]

(12)

The Soil Strategy for 2030 announced that the Commission would table a legislative proposal on soil health to enable the objectives of the Soil Strategy and to achieve good soil health across the EU by 2050. In its resolution of 28 April 2021 on soil protection (14), the European Parliament emphasised the importance of protecting soil and promoting healthy soils in the Union, bearing in mind that the degradation continues, despite the limited and uneven action being taken in some Member States. The European Parliament called on the Commission to design a Union wide common legal framework, with full respect for the subsidiarity principle, for the protection and sustainable use of soil, addressing all major soil threats. Importantly, the European Parliament underlined the risks stemming from the absence of a level playing field between Member States and their different protection regimes for soil to the functioning of the internal market and the strong potential to stimulate fair competition in the private sector, develop innovative solutions and know-how and strengthen the export of technologies outside the Union. [Am. 4]

(13)

In its conclusions of 23 October 2020 (15), the Council supported the Commission in stepping up efforts to better protect soils and soil biodiversity, as a non-renewable resource of vital importance.

(14)

Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 of the European Parliament and of the Council (16) sets out a binding objective of climate neutrality in the Union by 2050 and negative emissions thereafter, and of prioritising swift and predictable emission reductions and, at the same time, enhancing removals by natural sinks. Sustainable soil management results in increased carbon sequestration and in most cases in co-benefits for ecosystems and biodiversity. The Commission’s Communication on Sustainable Carbon Cycles (17) underlined the need for clear and transparent identification of the activities that unambiguously remove carbon from the atmosphere such as the development of a EU framework for the certification of carbon removals from natural ecosystems including soils. Moreover, the revised Regulation on Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry not only places soil carbon central to the achievement of targets on the pathway to a climate neutral Europe, but also calls for Member States to prepare a system for the monitoring of soil carbon stocks, using, inter alia, the land use/cover area frame statistical survey (LUCAS) dataset.

(15)

The Commission’s Communication on adaptation to climate change (18) underlined that using nature-based solutions inland, including the restoration of the sponge-like function of soils, will boost the supply of clean and fresh water, reduce the impacts of flooding and alleviate the impacts of droughts. It is important to maximise the capacity of soils to retain and purify water and reduce pollution.

(16)

The Zero Pollution Action Plan adopted by the Commission sets out the vision for 2050 that air, water and soil pollution is reduced to levels no longer considered harmful to health and natural ecosystems and that respect the boundaries our planet can cope with, thus creating a toxic-free environment.

(17)

The Commission’s Communication on safeguarding food security and reinforcing the resilience of food systems (19) stressed that food sustainability is fundamental for food security. Healthy soils make the Union food system more resilient by providing the basis for nutritious and sufficient food.

(18)

It is necessary vital to set appropriate measures for Union-wide harmonised monitoring and assessing assessment of soil health, managing soils sustainably and tackling contaminated sites to achieve healthy soils by 2050, to maintain them in healthy condition and meet the Union’s objectives on climate and biodiversity, to prevent and respond to droughts and natural disasters, to protect human health and to ensure food security and safety. [Am. 5]

(19)

Soils host more than 25 % of all biodiversity and are the second largest carbon pool of the planet. Due to their ability to capture and store carbon, healthy soils contribute to the achievement of the Union’s objectives on climate change . Soil biodiversity encompasses micro-organisms, including bacteria, fungi, protozoa and nematodes, as well as larger organisms such as earthworms, insects, and plant roots, which collectively contribute to the ecological and functional diversity of soil ecosystems . Healthy soils also provide a favourable habitat for organisms to thrive and are crucial for enhancing biodiversity and the stability of ecosystems. Biodiversity below and above ground are intimately connected and interact through mutualistic relationships (e.g. mycorrhizal fungi that connect plant roots). [Am. 6]

(19a)

Soil organic matter is crucial for the provision of soil ecosystem services and functions, by reducing soil degradation, erosion and compaction, while increasing the buffering, water holding and cation exchange capacity of the soil and soil organic carbon, which ultimately could increase crop yields. Additionally, soil organic matter positively affects soil biodiversity and could increase the carbon sequestered in soils, thereby contributing to climate change mitigation. [Am. 7]

(20)

Floods, wildfires and extreme weather events are natural disaster risks of the highest concern across Europe. The concern for droughts and water scarcity is rapidly increasing across the Union. In 2020, 24 Member States considered droughts and water scarcity to be key emerging or climate related disaster risks, compared to only 11 Member States in 2015. Healthy soils are instrumental for the resilience to droughts and natural disasters. Practices that enhance water retention and nutrient availability in soils, soil structure, soil biodiversity and carbon sequestration, increase the resilience of ecosystems, plants and crops to withstand and recover from drought, natural disasters, heatwaves and extreme weather events which will become more frequent in the future due to climate change. In turn, without proper soil management, drought and natural disasters cause soil degradation and make soils unhealthy. Improvement of soil health helps to mitigate the economic losses and fatalities associated with climate-related extremes, which amounted to approximately 560 billion EUR and more than 182 000 casualties in the Union between 1980 and 2021.

(21)

Soil health contributes directly to human health and well-being. Healthy soils provide safe and nutritious food, and have the ability to filter contaminants, hence preserving drinking water quality. Soil contamination can harm human health through ingestion, inhalation or dermal contact. Human exposure to the healthy soil microbial community is beneficial to develop the immune system and resistance against certain diseases and allergies. Healthy soils support the growth of trees, flowers, and grasses, and create green infrastructure that offers aesthetic value, well-being, and quality of life.

(21a)

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been frequently observed to contaminate groundwater, surface water as well as soil. They can alter soil properties and structures, with some of the reported effects including a decrease in soil respiration and water stable aggregates, and an increase in soil pH. [Am. 8]

(22)

Soil degradation impacts fertility, yields, pest resistance and nutritional food quality. Since 95 % of our food is directly or indirectly produced on soils and the global population continues to increase, it is key that this finite natural resource remains healthy to ensure food security in the long-term and secure the productivity and profitability of Union agriculture. Sustainable soil management practices , including those set out by the common agricultural policy, maintain or enhance soil health and contribute to the sustainability and resilience of the food system. Reducing nutrient losses and pesticide residues are essential in this respect. [Am. 9]

(23)

The long-term objective of the Directive is to achieve healthy soils across the Union by 2050. As an intermediate step, in light of the limited knowledge about the condition of soils and about the effectiveness and costs of the measures to regenerate their health, the directive takes a staged approach. In the first stage the focus will be on setting up the soil monitoring framework and assessing the situation of soils throughout the EU. It also includes requirements to lay down measures to manage soils sustainably and regenerate unhealthy soils once their condition is established, but without imposing an obligation to achieve Member States should define sustainable soil management practices taking into account the non-binding principles set in Annex III to this Directive. The Member States are given the flexibility to decide on the concrete practices to be implemented, when appropriate, reflecting local conditions and its feasibility, in order to facilitate achieving healthy soils by 2050 neither intermediate targets. This proportionate approach will allow sustainable soil management and regeneration of unhealthy soils that are not healthy to be well prepared, incentivised and set in motion. In a second stage, as soon as the results of the first assessment of soils and trends analysis are available, the Commission will take stock of the progress towards the 2050 objective and the experience thereof, and will propose a review of the directive if necessary to accelerate progress towards 2050 meet the 2050 goal . [Am. 10]

(24)

Addressing the pressures on soils and identifying the appropriate measures to maintain or regenerate soil health requires that the variety of soil types, the specific local and climatic conditions and the land use or the land cover is taken into account. It is therefore appropriate that Member States establish soil districts that are capable of adequately reflecting pedoclimatic conditions and soil variety on their whole territory . Soil districts should constitute the basic governance units to manage soils and to take measures to comply with the requirements laid down in this Directive, in particular with regard to the monitoring and assessment of soil health. The number, geographic extent and boundaries of soil districts for each Member State should be determined in order to facilitate the implementation of Regulation (UE)./.. of the European Parliament and of the Council (+) . There should be a minimum number of soil districts in each Member State taking into account the size of the Member State. This minimum number of soil districts for each Member State shall correspond to the number of NUTS 1 territorial units established in Regulation (EC) No 1059/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council (20). Member States can decide to set up their soil districts according to their number of NUTS 2 territorial units in order to better reflect their local conditions and the competences of their national authorities. [Am. 11]

(24a)

Soil districts are the most appropriate level for adopting programmes of measures and, where necessary, intermediate targets, including via local soil district plans, taking into account local conditions and the views of local stakeholders, to ensure that the respective soils improve their classification. As it takes more time to restore critically degraded soils, a sufficient timeline of up to 10 years should be given to ensure that their ecological classification improves. Soils registered as contaminated that are covered by specific management and mitigation plans could be subject to a different timeline. [Am. 12]

(25)

In order to ensure an appropriate governance on soils, Member States should be required to appoint a competent authority for each soil district. Member States should be allowed to appoint any additional competent authority at appropriate level including at national or regional level , including across territories of Member States . In order to minimise costs, Member States should primarily appoint authorities that are already set up. One authority could be responsible for several areas, which could improve consistency in the implementation of this Directive. In the event that Member States change the allocation of competences among competent authorities, they should communicate those changes to the Commission to keep the information up to date. [Am. 13]

(26)

In order to have a common definition of healthy soil condition, there is a need to define a minimum common set of measurable criteria, which, if not respected leads to a critical loss in the soil’s capacity to function as a vital living system and to provide ecosystem services. Such criteria should reflect and be based on the existing level of soil science.

(27)

In order to describe soil degradation it is necessary to establish provide for a common framework and to allow for comparability of data, the Commission should by means of delegated acts, adopt a methodology for determining threshold values for soil descriptors that can be measured or estimated. Even if there is significant variability between soil types, for each soil ecological status. It is important that this methodology take into account the most recent scientific evidence and provide for means to account for different climatic conditions and land uses, the current scientific knowledge allows to set criteria at Union level for some of those soil descriptors. However, types of soil. Using this methodology Member States should be able to adapt the criteria for some of these soil descriptors based on specific national or local conditions and define the criteria for other identify draft threshold values for soil descriptors for which common criteria at EU each soil ecological status taking into consideration climate conditions, the type of soil, type of land area and scientific evidence and submit them to the Commission. In order to ensure a level cannot be established at this stage. For those descriptors for playing field among Member States and to avoid Member States adopting threshold values which clear criteria that would distinguish between healthy and unhealthy condition cannot be identified now, only monitoring and assessment are allow similar soil to be categorised in a very different manner, thereby affecting the efforts required. This will facilitate the development of such criteria in future to improve its soil ecological status, the Commission should assess the draft threshold values and their scientific justification. The Commission should be able to ask Member States for additional information or revision of their draft threshold values . The Commission should approve the threshold values, provided that its observations have been adequately taken into account. [Am. 14]

(27a)

An integrated view on the assessment of soil health that goes beyond solely looking at degradation factors and provides a clear path for its improvement is necessary. The overall assessment of soil ecological status should, therefore, be categorised according to five classes from ‘high soil ecological status’, ‘good ecological status’, ‘moderate’, ‘degraded soils’ to ‘critically degraded soils’, taking into consideration, inter alia, the presence of degradation factors and soil functions. [Am. 15]

(27b)

To respect the autonomy of the Member States that are willing to implement more comprehensive monitoring systems, Member States should be able to choose among 3 monitoring tiers. Tier 1 provides a minimum set of soil descriptors. In Tier 2, 20 % of the sampling points are determined according to the LUCAS programme and double sampled for continuous monitoring and the establishment of transfer functions, while the remaining 80 % of the sampling points are determined by the Member State, also for continuous monitoring and following the criteria set in the annexes to this Directive. In Tiers 1 and 2, 20 % of sampling points are dedicated to targeted monitoring, allowing Member States to expand risk-based assessments, conduct investigations, or target areas of particular interest. The establishment of a tiered approach increases the number of soil descriptors assessed but also the level of autonomy that Member States have in determining the thresholds associated to the ecological status of soils. The main goal of such a tiered approach is to allow all Member States to implement their monitoring systems and take advantage of any current national systems that already monitor soils. Tier 2 will allow gaps to be filled in the scope and extent of the soil descriptors considered. In Tier 3, the number of soil descriptors is expanded further to refine particular aspects of the soil monitoring systems. [Am. 16]

(28)

In order to create incentives, Member States should set up mechanisms to recognize the efforts of landowners and land managers to maintain the soil in healthy condition, including in the form of soil health certification complementary to the Union regulatory framework for carbon removals, and supporting the implementation of the renewable energy sustainability criteria set out in article 29 of Directive (EU) 2018/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council (21). The Commission should facilitate soil health certification by inter alia exchanging information and promoting best practices, raising awareness and assessing feasibility of developing recognition of certification schemes at Union level. Synergies between different certification schemes should be exploited as much as possible to reduce administrative burden for those applying for relevant certifications. [Am. 17]

(29)

Some soils have special characteristics either because they are atypical by nature and constitute rare habitats for biodiversity or unique landscapes or because they have been heavily modified by humans. Those characteristics should be taken into account in the context of the definition of healthy soils and the requirements to achieve healthy soil condition.

(30)

Soil is a limited resource subject to an ever-growing competition for different uses. Land take is a process often driven by economic development needs, that transforms natural and semi-natural areas (including agricultural and forestry land, gardens and parks) into artificial land development, using soil as a platform for constructions and infrastructure, as a direct source of raw material or as archive for historic patrimony. This transformation may cause the loss, often irreversibly, of the capacity of soils to provide other ecosystem services (provision of food and biomass, water and nutrients cycling, basis for biodiversity and carbon storage). In particular, land take often affects the most fertile agricultural soils, putting food security in jeopardy. Sealed soil also exposes human settlements to higher flood peaks and more intense heat island effects. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor land take and soil sealing and their effects on soil’s capacity to provide ecosystem services. It is also appropriate to lay down certain principles to mitigate the impacts of land take as part of complementing sustainable soil management. [Am. 18]

(31)

The assessment of soil health based on the monitoring network should be accurate while at the same time keeping the costs of such monitoring at reasonable level. It is therefore appropriate to lay down criteria for sampling points that are representative of the soil condition under different soil types, climatic conditions and land use. The grid of sampling points should be determined by using geostatistical methods and be sufficiently dense to provide an estimation of the area of healthy soils, at national level, within an uncertainty of not more than 5 %. This value is commonly considered to provide a statistically sound estimation and reasonable assurance that the objective has been achieved. It is important that the soil monitoring methodology and framework include harmonised sampling criteria, including sampling depth. [Am. 19]

(31a)

Soil archives preserve a snapshot of soils from a specific time and location, allowing Member States to use one sample for various purposes and to streamline field sampling activities, thus reducing the long-term costs of in-situ monitoring. In addition, soil archives enable researchers to re-evaluate soils of the past in the context of the present for an improved understanding of long-term soil change, or for other research purposes, including medical research. It is therefore imperative that the Commission, including services such as the Joint Research Centre (JRC), together with the Member States and the European Soil Observatory, ensure that the samples, DNA extracts and raw data taken for the compliance with Union and national environmental law are well preserved in physical archives and that the samples and raw data of those archives remain available for further research and innovation. [Am. 20]

(32)

As a complement to existing national inventories, the Commission should assist and support Member States’ monitoring of soil health by continuing to carry out and enhancing regular in-situ soil sampling and related soil measurements (LUCAS soil) as part of the Land Use/Cover Area frame statistical Survey (LUCAS) Programme. For that purpose, the LUCAS Programme shall should be enhanced and upgraded to fully align it with the specific quality requirements and all the descriptors to be met for the purpose of this Directive. In order to alleviate the burden, Member States should be allowed to take into account the soil health data surveyed under the enhanced LUCAS soil. LUCAS soil will sample and analyse at least 20 % of the size of national samples, thereby contributing to the monitoring carried out by Member States. The analysis by LUCAS is essential to allowing Member States to calculate and calibrate valid transfer functions in order to allow them to continue using alternative monitoring design in accordance with Tier 2. The Commission should, at the request of a Member State, provide further assistance with up to 50 % of the sampling during the first national monitoring round. The Member States thus supported should take the necessary legal arrangements to ensure that the Commission can carry out such in-situ soil sampling, including on privately owned fields, with the agreement of the owners, and in compliance with applicable national or Union legislation. [Am. 21]

(33)

The Commission is developing remote sensing services in the context of Copernicus as a user-driven programme, hereby also supporting Member States. In order to increase the timeliness and effectiveness of soil health monitoring, and where relevant, Member States should use remote sensing data including outputs from the Copernicus services for monitoring relevant soil descriptors and for assessing soil health. The Commission and the European Environment Agency should support exploring and developing soil remote sensing products, to assist the Member States in monitoring the relevant soil descriptors. The Commission and Member States should further support the use of reliable and available digital technologies, such as electronic databases, geographic information systems, automated image identification or e-DNA, to improve knowledge sharing and transparency with regard to soil health and to reduce the costs of soil measurements and monitoring. [Am. 22]

(34)

Building on and upgrading the existing EU soil observatory, the Commission should establish a digital soil health data portal that should be compatible with the EU Data Strategy (22) and the EU data spaces and which should be a hub providing access to soil data coming from various sources. The soil health data should be made publicly available in a format that can be used by the research community, landowners and managers, advisors working within the farm advisory system and the public, ensuring compliance with Union law on the protection of personal data. That portal should primarily include all the relevant data collected by the Member States and the Commission as required by this Directive and serve as a platform for the establishment of a Sustainable Soil Management Toolbox that will provide up-to-date context-specific information about sustainable soil management practices based on different soil type, land use and climatic conditions . It should also be possible to integrate in the portal, on a voluntary basis, other relevant soil data collected by Member States or any other party (and in particular data resulting from projects under Horizon Europe and the Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’), provided that those data meet certain requirements as regards format and specifications. Those requirements should be specified by the Commission by way of implementing acts. Member States and the Commission should ensure that research institutions have easy and free access to all data at their request. [Am. 23]

(35)

It is also necessary to improve the harmonization of soil monitoring systems used in the Member States and exploit the synergies between Union and national monitoring systems and make full use of already existing harmonised monitoring tools such as LUCAS in order to have more comparable data across the Union. Moreover, harmonisation of monitoring systems in Member States would help to scale up investments in advanced soil monitoring techniques and technologies. [Am. 24]

(36)

In order to make the widest possible use of soil health data generated by the monitoring carried out under this Directive, Member States should be required to facilitate the access to such data for relevant stakeholders such as farmers, foresters, land owners and local authorities. [Am. 25]

(37)

To maintain or enhance soil health, soils need to be managed sustainably. Sustainable soil management will enable the long-term provision of soil services, including improved air and water quality and food security. It is therefore appropriate to lay down non-binding sustainable soil management principles to guide soil management practices. [Am. 26]

(38)

Economic instruments, including those under the common agricultural policy (CAP) that provide support to farmers, have a crucial role in the transition to the sustainable management of agricultural soils and, to a lesser extent, forest soils. The CAP aims to support soil health through the implementation of conditionality, eco-schemes and rural development measures. Financial support for farmers and foresters who apply sustainable soil management practices can also be generated by the private sector. Voluntary sustainability labels in the food, wood, bio-based, and energy industry, for example, established by private stakeholders, can take into account the sustainable soil management principles set out in contributions to improve soil health in accordance with this Directive. This can enable food, wood, and other biomass producers that follow those principles in their production to reflect these in the value of their products. Additional funding for a network of real-life sites for testing, demonstrating and upscaling of solutions, including on carbon farming, will be provided through the Soil Mission’s living labs and lighthouses. Without prejudice to the polluter pays principle, support and advice should be provided by Member States to help landowners and land users affected by action taken under this Directive taking into account, in particular, the needs and limited capacities of small and medium sized enterprises. [Am. 27]

(39)

Pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 of the European Parliament and of the Council (23), Member States have to describe in their CAP Strategic Plans how the environmental and climate architecture of those Plans is meant to contribute to the achievement of, and be consistent with, the long-term national targets set out in, or deriving from, the legislative acts listed in Annex XIII to that Regulation.

(39a)

Good agricultural and environmental conditions (GAECs) 5, 6 and 7 as set out in Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 include standards to improve tillage management to reduce the risk of soil degradation and erosion, including by consideration of the slope gradient and minimum land management reflecting site specific conditions to limit erosion, minimum soil cover to avoid bare soil, protection of soils in periods that are most sensitive as well as crop rotation on arable land. In addition, GAEC 1 on protection of permanent pasture and GAEC 2 on protecting wetlands and peatlands and soils high in organic matter, are relevant for soil protection. [Am. 28]

(40)

In order to ensure that the best sustainable soil management practices are implemented, Member States should be required to closely monitor the impact of soil management practices and adjust practices and recommendations as necessary, taking into account new knowledge from research and innovation. Valuable contributions are expected in this respect from the Horizon Europe Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’ and in particular its living labs and activities to support soil monitoring, soil education and citizen engagement. [Am. 29]

(41)

Regeneration brings degraded soils back to healthy condition. When defining soil regeneration measures, Member States should be required to take into account the outcome of the soil health assessment and to adapt those regeneration measures to the specific characteristics of the situation, the type, the use and the condition of the soil and the local, climatic and environmental conditions.

(42)

To ensure synergies between the different measures adopted under other Union legislation that may have an impact on soil health, and the measures that are to be put in place to sustainably manage and regenerate soils in the Union, Member States should ensure that the sustainable soil management and regeneration practices are coherent with the national restoration plans adopted in accordance with Regulation (UE) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council (24)+; the national biodiversity strategies and action plans established in accordance with Article 6 of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, the strategic plans to be drawn up by Member States under the Common Agricultural Policy in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2021/2115, the codes of good agricultural practices and the action programmes for designated vulnerable zones adopted in accordance with Council Directive 91/676/EEC (25), the conservation measures and prioritized action framework established for Natura 2000 sites in accordance with Council Directive 92/43/EEC (26), the measures for achieving good ecological and chemical status of water bodies included in river basin management plans prepared in accordance with Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (27), the flood risk management measures established in accordance with Directive 2007/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (28), the drought management plans promoted in the Union Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change (29), the national action programmes established in accordance with Article 10 of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, targets set out under Regulation (EU) 2018/841 of the European Parliament and of the Council (30) and Regulation (EU) 2018/842 of the European Parliament and of the Council (31), the integrated national energy and climate plans established in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council (32), the national air pollution control programmes prepared under Directive (EU) 2016/2284 of the European Parliament and of the Council (33), risk assessments and disaster risk management planning established in accordance with Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (34), and national action plans established in accordance with Regulation (UE) …/… Directive 2009/128/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council  (35) . Sustainable soil management and regeneration practices should be, as far as possible, integrated within these programmes, plans and measures to the extent that they contribute to the achievement of their objectives. Consequently, relevant indicators and data, such as soil-related result indicators under the CAP Regulation and statistical data on agricultural input and output reported under Regulation (EU) 2022/2379 of the European Parliament and of the Council (36), should be accessible to the competent authorities responsible for sustainable soil management and regeneration practices and soil health assessment in order to cross-link these data and indicators and thus enable the most accurate possible assessment of the effectiveness of the measures chosen. [Am. 30]

(43)

Contaminated sites are the legacy of decades of industrial activity in the EU and may lead to risks for human and animal health and the environment now and in the future. Building on existing knowledge, it is therefore necessary first to identify and investigate potentially contaminated sites and then, in case of confirmed contamination, to assess the risks and take measures to address unacceptable risks them . Soil investigation may prove that a potentially contaminated site is in fact not contaminated. In that case, the site should no longer be labelled by the Member State as potentially contaminated, unless contamination is suspected based on new evidence. [Am. 31]

(44)

To identify potentially contaminated sites, Member States should collect evidence among others through historical research, past industrial incidents and accidents, environmental permits , health surveys and notifications by the public or authorities. [Am. 32]

(45)

In order to ensure that soil investigations on potentially contaminated sites are carried out timely and effectively , as requested in the European Parliament's resolution of 28 April 2021 on soil protection , Member States should, in addition to the obligation to lay down the deadline by which those investigations should be carried out, be required to lay down specific events that also trigger such investigation. Such triggering events may include the request or review of an environmental or building permit or an authorisation required pursuant to Union legislation or national legislation, soil excavation activities, land use changes or land or real estate transactions. Soil investigations may follow different stages, such as a desk study, site visit, preliminary or exploratory investigation, more detailed or descriptive investigation, and field or laboratory testing. Baseline reports and monitoring measures implemented in accordance with Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (37) could also qualify as soil investigation where appropriate. [Am. 33]

(46)

Flexibility for the management of potentially contaminated sites and contaminated sites is needed to take account of costs, benefits and local specificities. Member States should therefore at least adopt a risk-based approach for managing potentially contaminated sites and contaminated sites, taking into account the difference between these two categories, and which allows to allocate resources taking account of the specific environmental, economic and social context. Decisions should be taken in cooperation with local health practitioners, health authorities and the scientific community, based on the nature and extent of potential risks for human health and the environment resulting from exposure to soil contaminants (e.g. exposure of vulnerable populations such as pregnant women, persons with disabilities, elderly people and children) , including exposure, and cumulative effects on human health, soil ecosystems and associated ecosystem services . The cost-benefit analysis of undertaking remediation should be positive balanced, taking into account the advantages for future generations . The optimum remediation solution should be sustainable and selected through a balanced decision-making process that takes account of the environmental, economic and social impacts. The management of potentially contaminated sites and contaminated sites should respect the polluter-pays, precautionary and proportionality principles. Member States should lay down the specific methodology for determining the site-specific risks of contaminated sites. Member States should also define what constitutes an unacceptable risk from a contaminated site based on scientific knowledge, the precautionary principle, local specificities the opinion of health authorities and practitioners , and current and future land use. In order to reduce the risks of contaminated sites to an acceptable level for human and animal health and the environment, Member States should take adequate risk reduction measures , while prioritising in- or ex-situ including remediation. It should be possible to qualify measures taken under other Union legislation as risk reduction measures under this Directive when those measures effectively reduce risks posed by contaminated sites. [Am. 34]

(46a)

Land take mitigation principles should facilitate the Union's food security while taking into account sustainable housing, essential infrastructure and renewable energy projects. [Am. 35]

(47)

Measures taken pursuant to this Directive should also take account of other EU policy objectives, such as the objectives pursued by [Regulation (EU) xxxx/xxxx (38)] that aim at ensuring secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials for Europe’s industry.

(48)

Transparency is an essential component of soil policy and ensures public accountability and awareness, fair market conditions and the monitoring of progress. Therefore, Member States should set up and maintain a national register of contaminated sites and potentially contaminated sites which contains site-specific information that should be made publicly accessible in an online georeferenced spatial database. The register should contain the information that is necessary for the public to be informed on the existence and on the management of potentially contaminated sites and contaminated sites. Because the presence of soil contamination is not yet confirmed but only suspected on potentially contaminated sites, the difference between contaminated sites and potentially contaminated sites has to be communicated and explained well to the public to avoid raising unnecessary concern.

(48a)

In order to protect soils from pollution by emerging chemicals that have the potential to cause significant risks to human and animal health and to contaminate surrounding air, surface waters, groundwater, and subsequently oceans, policy mechanisms to detect and assess such substances of emerging concern should be established. In that regard, an approach that allows monitoring and analysis of those substances or groups of substances via watch lists, as is already the case for surface water and groundwater, should be developed for soil contamination. The substances or groups of substances to be placed on the watch list should be selected from amongst those substances for which the information available indicates that they could pose a significant risk at Union level to, or via, the soil environment, and for which the monitoring data are insufficient. The number of such substances or groups of substances to be monitored and analysed under the watch lists should not be limited. [Am. 37]

(48b)

Substances such as persistent organic pollutants, materials and particles, including microplastics or nanoplastics, pose a clear risk to soil health, but also to essential activities such as the development of agriculture. Their presence in soils can have implications for soil fertility, thereby compromising the health and healthy development of crops. It is therefore essential that this Directive provide for a framework for both substances and materials to be included in the monitoring of soil contaminants, and for the establishment of environmental quality standards and a set of measures to prevent and remediate soil contamination from known and emerging threats, where appropriate. [Am. 38]

(49)

Article 19(1) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) requires Member States to provide remedies sufficient to ensure effective judicial protection in the fields covered by Union law. In addition, in accordance with the Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (39) (Aarhus Convention), members of the public concerned should have access to justice in order to contribute to the protection of the right to live in an environment which is adequate for personal health and well-being.

(50)

Directive (EU) 2019/1024 of the European Parliament and of the Council (40) mandates the release of public sector data in free and open formats. The overall objective is to continue the strengthening of the EU’s data economy by increasing the amount of interoperable public sector data available for re-use, ensuring fair competition and easy access to public sector information, and enhancing cross-border innovation based on data. The main principle is that government data should be open by default and design. Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (41) is aimed at guaranteeing the right of access to environmental information in the Member States in line with the Aarhus Convention. The Aarhus Convention and Directive 2003/4/EC encompass broad obligations related both to making environmental information available upon request and actively disseminating such information. Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (42) is also of broad scope, covering the sharing of spatial information, including data sets on different environmental topics. It is important that provisions of this Directive related to access to information and data-sharing arrangements complement those Directives and do not create a separate legal regime. Therefore, the provisions of this Directive regarding information to the public and information on monitoring of implementation should be without prejudice to Directives (EU) 2019/1024, 2003/4/EC and 2007/2/EC. [Am. 39]

(51)

In order to ensure the necessary adaptation of the rules on soil health monitoring, sustainable soil management assessment and management of contaminated sites, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission in respect of amending or supplementing this Directive to adopt a methodology for determining threshold values for soil descriptors to be established by Member States, and to adapt to technical and scientific progress the methodologies for monitoring soil health, the list of sustainable soil management principles, the indicative list of risk reduction measures, the phases and requirements for the site-specific risk assessment and the content establishment of the register of contaminated and potentially minimum tolerable values in relation to the definition of an unacceptable risk for health and the environment resulting from contaminated sites. It is of particular importance that the Commission carries out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making of 13 April 2016 (43). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. [Am. 40]

(52)

In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Directive, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission in order to set out the format, structure and detailed arrangements for reporting data and information electronically to the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and the Council (44).

(53)

The Commission should carry out an evidence-based evaluation and, where relevant, a revision of this Directive, 6 years after its entry into force on the basis of the results of the soil health assessment. The evaluation should assess in particular the need to set more specific requirements to make sure unhealthy soils are regenerated and the objective gap and measures needed to achieve healthy soils by 2050 is achieved. The evaluation should also assess the need to adapt the definition of healthy soils to scientific and technical progress by adding provisions on certain descriptors or criteria based on new scientific evidence relating to the protection of soils or on the grounds of a problem specific to a Member State arising from new environmental or climatic circumstances. Pursuant to paragraph 22 of the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making, that evaluation should be based on the criteria of efficiency, effectiveness, relevance, coherence and EU value added and should provide the basis for impact assessments of possible further measures. [Am. 41]

(54)

Coordinated measures by all Member States are necessary to achieve the vision to have all soils healthy by 2050 and to secure the provision of ecosystem services by soils across the Union in the long-term. Individual actions of Member States have proven to be insufficient since the soil degradation is continuing and even deteriorating. Since the objectives of this Directive cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of the scale and effects of the action, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 TEU. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(55)

In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents (45), Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified.

(55a)

This Directive is aimed at meeting the long-term objective of healthy soil in the Union by 2050 based on a coherent framework for soil monitoring and improvement of its health. Given its nature as a directive, in accordance with Article 288 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, this Directive is binding as to the result to be achieved in the Member States to whom it is addressed, while leaving national authorities the power to choose the form and methods to achieve the result. It will therefore be up to Member States to devise their own laws on how to reach the goals laid down in this Directive. The proposed instrument of a directive leaves much flexibility to the Member States to identify the best measures for them and to adapt the approach to local conditions. This is crucial to take account of the regional and local specificities as regards soil variability, land use, climatological conditions and socio-economic aspects. The nature of the instrument implies that principles laid down in this Directive do not entail direct obligations on individuals. [Am. 42]