The law is a core element of the European Green Deal and the EU Biodiversity Strategy and makes the targets set therein for the "restoration of nature" binding.

[6] The law was adopted in the Council of the European Union on 17 June 2024[11] and was published in the EU's Official Journal on 29 July 2024, thus coming into force on 18 August 2024 (20th day after publication).

This decision, however, placed her in a contentious legal grey area due to opposition from Austria's federal states and her coalition partners, the centre-right Austrian People's Party (ÖVP).

[25] In another open letter by academics, biodiversity researchers requested policies like the Nature Restoration Law are built alongside farmers to empower them to make agriculture more environmentally friendly.

[29][30] In July 2023, European People's Party (EPP) leader Manfred Weber tried to block the Nature Restoration Law, saying it would destroy farmers' livelihoods and threaten food security.