Policy News - December 31, 2003

EU’s environmental performance

The European Union (EU) has made progress on reducing the greenhouse gases implicated in climate change, conserving biodiversity, improving environmental health, and managing its natural resources more effectively, according to the European Commission’s (EC’s) first systematic overview and analysis of environmental policies, which was published in December. The main purpose of the Environmental Policy Review is to report on developments in EU policies, including the 6th European Environment Programme, since 2001 and highlight current priorities. The EC wants it to become an annual publication, saying it would help speed up policy reforms and identify new policy challenges. Some goals in the Review are very general, for example, ensuring efficient implementation of existing environmental legislation such as waste recycling targets, but others are more detailed, including increased use of market-based instruments like energy taxes. It also reviews progress made on climate change, nature and biodiversity, environment and health, and resource management. It praises, for example, the EU emissions trading scheme to be implemented in 2005, but notes that the EU as a whole, and nine Member States will still miss their Kyoto targets. To view the report, go to www.europa.eu.int/comm/environment/docum/index.htm.