29/09/2025 (Agence Europe) – On Monday 29 September, the EU Council officially adopted the Soil Monitoring Directive, establishing the first-ever EU-wide framework for soil evaluation and monitoring, with the non-binding objective of achieving healthy soils throughout Europe by 2050. To achieve this, the directive establishes a soil monitoring framework that includes the management of risks associated with contaminated sites in the EU. A public list of these will be drawn up ten years after the text comes into force. Member States will be required to report regularly to the Commission and the European Environment Agency on the state of soil in order to ensure comparability of data (see EUROPE 13619/1). The final European Parliament vote is still to come. Member States will have three years after entry into force to transpose the new rules into their national legislation. (FS)