The contracting authority expects to award only 1 grant per specific priority.

• Support for mapping, condition assessment and restoration of marine habitats.

The objective of the project is to support EU Member States to advance their implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives (BHD) in the marine environment and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), and under the perspective of the development of a EU approach to overarching restoration objective for the long-term recovery of nature the project will help to support Member States by providing them the best knowledge on methods and steps to: 1) map the location of marine habitats within their marine areas, 2) assess the condition of these marine habitats 3) implement suitable measures to restore and/or re-establish these marine habitats.

• Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR).

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is one of the instruments that can significantly contribute to progress towards the objective of ensuring sound waste management in line with the waste hierarchy, at the end of a product’s life cycle. EPR can contribute substantially to reducing waste generation and decoupling resource use from economic growth. The Member States have the sole responsibility in ensuring compliance with the rules of the EPR schemes set up on their territories, regardless of whether the scheme is based on EU rules or national rules.

Stakeholders/producers often raise that the EPR landscape is diverse and therefore needs harmonizing to ensure a smooth functioning of the internal market. The overall objective of this specific priority is to fill this gap.

• Capacity building and training of private sector stakeholders in implementing the EU Regulation on Deforestation free products.

The objective of this project is to support the efforts of EU Member States to raise the level of awareness about the EUDR obligations amongst operators and traders and more particularly that of SMEs, including microenterprises, and natural persons, and to build their capacity to comply with their obligations under the new regulation.

• Holistic orientations towards environmental new infrastructures in Ukrainian cities – Debris.

Management of construction debris imply challenges to health and should incorporate sustainability concerns. Removed materials need to be sorted, processed and screened for contaminants. When safe, the debris may be reused for quick repairs and reconstruction leading to cutting costs and reducing the strain on natural resources. The process can help to build back the Ukrainian cities better and greener than before.

There is the need to identify and test a methodology and related process that can be used for facilitating the debris removal, taking into account the work already done by the different donors.

• Holistic orientations towards environmental new infrastructures in Ukrainian cities – Water.

In the context of the Ukrainian’s path towards the European Union and aligning with the EU acquis, the project aims at building on a legislative and policy framework to showcase solutions to water management challenges in the country.

• Developing best practices in low tillage farming without herbicides.

The European Green Deal has set out ambitious objectives for the reduction of nutrient losses and the use of harmful chemicals (pesticides) in agriculture. So-called ‘regenerative’ farming practices promise the potential to reduce the need for external fertiliser inputs through practices to improve soil fertility. Key practices include continuous plant cover, diverse crop mixes (including cover crops), minimal tillage of soils, minimal artificial inputs, and integration of livestock in the management of soils.  Many no-tillage operations use herbicides to manage weeds and to terminate cover crops before planting a new crop. Similarly, organic farms have traditionally found it difficult to apply low/no tillage practices, as tillage is regarded as a necessary means of controlling weeds in the absence of chemical inputs in organic agriculture. Hence, there is a need to develop knowledge in this area.

The reduction of nutrient losses and the use of harmful chemicals in agriculture have been identified as essential objectives under the EU’s Biodiversity Strategy to 2030 and the targets set out in the Global Biodiversity Framework. Existing policies (Common Agricultural Policy, Horizon Europe) already promote organic farming and regenerative practices in various ways.

• Circular Europe Hotspot, a new governance model for the ECESP, with a focus on Circular Business model mainstreaming.

The aim of this project is to better equip the future group of stakeholders leading the activities of the platform under the new Commission’s mandate, so they contribute to the successful implementation of the EU circular economy policies and work towards eliminating the obstacles that are inhibiting it.

The project also has as core objectives to:
-Support and stimulate the shift to circular business models (CBM) and practices, including but not limited to sectors or products with ESPR relevance, which would have to be further assessed/defined.
-Mainstream circular business models and linked innovative approaches as well as targeted support to SMEs and microenterprises.
– Support the Commission in its activities to bring different stakeholders together to promote CBMs and practices, and in preparing guidance on boosting CBMs for businesses, Member States and regions.

• Support for actions to address degassing of NMVOCs in inland waterway and maritime transport.

The overall objective of this project will be to assess the current situation regarding the transport of Non Methane Volatile Organic Compounds in inland waterway and maritime transport and the issue of degassing, and assess pathways and measures to (further) limit or ban degassing of NMVOCs in inland waterway and maritime transport.

• Testing and promoting high-quality biodiversity certificate and credit schemes in EU wetlands.

The project aims to scan and test the various biodiversity and climate certification systems and credit schemes on EU wetlands to identify the key elements needed to provide the high-quality guarantees expected by investors, buyers and stakeholders including landowners, land managers and local communities.

Further details in the call document (p. 9-37).