<p>The EU considers our natural capital to be important because we depend on nature for food, energy, raw materials, air, water and more. The services provided by healthy ecosystems make life possible and support the economy. But many ecosystems and their services across the EU territory are now degraded and fragmented as a result of intensive agriculture, urban sprawl and grey infrastructure such as railways, roads and bridges, as well as the impacts of pollution, invasive alien species and climate change. The loss and degradation of valuable ecosystems also undermines the benefits that flow from nature to people and the economy. This target will contribute to the EU's sustainable growth and help the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. It will also ensure protected habitats are better connected, within and between Natura 2000 areas as well as in the wider countryside. By taking nature's benefits into account in socioeconomic decisions, ecosystems can keep on providing their vital services. The Netherlands has committed itself to nature objectives stated in the EU Biodiversity Strategy and thus indirectly to those in the Convention on Biological Diversity. The national targets are based on the European targets and related to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.&nbsp;The relevant conventions, directives and agreements have been implemented in national policy and legislation, including the policy documents Natural Capital Agenda (NCA, 2013) and the national nature vision The Natural Way Forward – Government Vision 2014 (NV), and since the decentralisation of nature policy in the provincial Nature Visions (PVs) and in the Nature Pact (NP, 2013), the agreement between the Dutch government and the provinces on the implementation of Dutch nature policy. In these NBSAP’s the following objectives are related to the second main target of the European biodiversity strategy:regional development with nature combinations (recreation, drinking water, energy): green living and working; develop and build with nature (NV, PVs);future-proof nature: more room for natural processes (NV, PVs);improve spatial conditions by creating a robust national ecological network (NP);by 2020, all ecosystem services in the Netherlands will have been identified, along with recognition of their contribution to the economy, and this will be incorporated into the decision-making process of government and the private sector (NCA).</p>