A new paper by Till Reinholz and Michael Kalis titled “Transformative Law Exemplified by Peat Soil Protection in the European Nature Restoration Regulation” is set to be published in one of Germanys most important climate law journals, KlimR (Climate & Law, https://rsw.beck.de/zeitschriften/klimr), offering a timely legal analysis of one of the EU’s most ambitious environmental initiatives. The study explores how the Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR) as the first continent-wide law of its kind introduces transformative legal concepts, using the protection and restoration of peat soils as a key example and examines the role of law in multidimensional transformations.*
*By focusing on peatlands—most effective terroristic carbon sinks and biodiversity hotspots—the paper illustrates how the NRR marks a shift from traditional environmental regulation preserving historical entrenched climate damaging forms of land-use to a more systemic and forward-looking legal approach accompanied by MRV measurements and implementation pathways backed by a coherent governance framework. The authors argue that peat soil protection under the NRR is not just about conservation but about redefining legal frameworks to support ecological resilience and long-term sustainability addressing a transformative challenge which needs to be supported by large parts of the society.