EU ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION

EU environmental policies and legislation protect natural habitats, keep air and water clean, ensure proper waste disposal, improve knowledge about toxic chemicals and help businesses move toward a sustainable economy.

The following is a list of EU Environment and Climate Change related legislation documents and weblinks that are currently available on Lean Business Ireland.

Regional convention – The offshore protocol helps protect the Mediterranean Sea from pollution
Council Decision of 17 December 2012 on the accession of the European Union to the Protocol for the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea against pollution resulting from exploration and exploitation of the continental shelf and the seabed and its subsoil (2013/5/EU) (The Offshore Protocol)

The EU has acceded to the offshore protocol of the Barcelona convention, underlining its commitment to protect the Mediterranean Sea against pollution from offshore exploration and exploitation activities.

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Regulating GM crops: EU countries’ rights
Directive 2001/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 March 2001 on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms and repealing Council Directive 90/220/EEC - Commission Declaration

—It aims to make the procedure for granting consent for the deliberate release and placing on the market of genetically modified organisms (GMOs)* more efficient and more transparent.

—It also limits such consent to a period of 10 years (renewable) and introduces compulsory monitoring after GMOs have been placed on the market.

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Reliable benchmarking of environmental performance
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Building the Single Market for Green Products Facilitating better information on the environmental performance of products and organisations

Green products make more efficient use of resources and cause less environmental damage, compared to other similar products. They also benefit society by increasing consumer satisfaction, fostering innovation and creating sustainable employment. A more resource-efficient EU economy could generate 2.8 million jobs by 2020.

Worldwide, the market for green products and services is estimated at €4.2 trillion. Yet although the EU has a one-fifth share of that market, green products still only make up a small fraction of its internal market.

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Removal and disposal of disused offshore oil and gas installations
Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on removal and disposal of disused offshore oil and gas installations

The Commission is evaluating how to protect the environment by reducing pollution from disused offshore oil and gas installations.

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Renewable energy – Bioeconomy for Europe
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS Innovating for Sustainable Growth: A Bioeconomy for Europe

The strategy’s goal is a more innovative and low-emission economy, reconciling these diverse but interconnected challenges and embracing the sustainable use of renewable biological resources in industry. In doing this, biodiversity and environmental protection should be assured, stimulating economic growth and creating jobs.

With the world’s population expected to increase by more than 30 % in the next 40 years, meeting these complex challenges requires research and innovation in order to achieve rapid, concerted and sustained change.

KEY POINTS

For its implementation, the strategy presents a bioeconomy action plan, which focuses on three main areas, as indicated below.

  • Ensuring investment in research, innovation and skills for the bioeconomy, through EU funding, national funding and partnerships with the private sector. Supporting the development of bioeconomy curricula in universities and vocational training schemes is an important element of this.
  • Better coordination and engagement with policy makers and stakeholders on bioeconomic issues, through the creation of advisory bioeconomy panels at all levels. A bioeconomy observatory should monitor progress, while the strategy also proposes regular conferences of interested parties. International cooperation and the sharing of expertise on food security, climate change and the issue of sustainable biomass supply are to be encouraged.
  • Opening up markets and improving competitiveness in the bioeconomy sector by boosting sustainable production and promoting waste conversion into new products. The strategy also promotes the importance of standards and consistent ways of assessing sustainability, as well as facilitating ‘green’public procurement.
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Renewable energy – Encouraging the use of biomass as an alternative source of energy
Communication from the Commission - Biomass action plan

It sets out ways to increase the development of biomass energy by creating incentives for its use and removing obstacles to its production. It identifies measures to promote biomass in heating, electricity and transport. It addresses issues such as supply, financing and research. The action plan was a first step to highlight the industry’s importance.

KEY POINTS

The communication led to further initiatives to promote biofuels.

Sustainability criteria exist to ensure that the use of biofuels guarantees real carbon savings and protects biodiversity. They stipulate that biofuels:

  • must achieve greenhouse gas savings of at least 35 % compared to fossil fuels. This rises to 50 % in 2017;
  • cannot be grown in areas with previously high carbon stock such as wetlands and forests;
  • cannot be produced from raw materials harvested from biodiversity-rich land.

Voluntary schemes verify whether producers comply with the sustainability criteria. If they do, they are eligible for financial support or their output counts towards national renewable targets.

Procedures for permits: practical recommendations provide help and advice to project developers, NGOs and public authorities when handling requests to build biomass plants.

The European advanced biofuels flight path aims to promote biofuels as a renewable fuel alternative for aircraft.

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Renewable energy – EU strategy for biofuels [archived]
Communication from the Commission - an EU Strategy for Biofuels

The European Union (EU) sets out seven strategic policy areas for the development of the production and use of biofuels by the Member States and developing countries.

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Renewable energy – Promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources
Directive 2009/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and amending and subsequently repealing Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC
  • This directive, which amends and repeals earlier Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC, creates a common set of rules for the use of renewable energy in the EU so as to limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and promote cleaner transport.
  • It sets national binding targets for all EU countries with the overall aim of making renewable energy sources account by 2020 for 20% of EU energy and for 10% of energy specifically in the transport sector (both measured in terms of gross final energy consumption, i.e. total energy consumed from all sources, including renewables).

KEY POINTS

  • Each EU country is to make a national action plan for 2020, setting out how to achieve the national target for renewables in gross final energy consumption as well as the 10% target for renewable energy sources in transport.
  • To help achieve targets in a cost-effective way, EU countries can exchange energy from renewable sources*. To count towards their action plans, EU countries can also receive renewable energy from countries outside the EU, provided that energy is consumed in the EU and that it is produced by modern/efficient installations.
  • Each EU country must be able to guarantee the origin of electricity, heating and cooling produced from renewable energy sources.
  • EU countries should build the necessary infrastructure for using renewable energy sources in the transport sector.

Directive (EU) 2015/1513 amends Directives 2009/28/EC and 98/70/EC, the EU’s law on the quality of petrol and diesel fuels. Among other things, it aims to start the transition from conventional* (first-generation) biofuels to advanced* (second-generation) biofuels that deliver substantial GHG savings. It introduces a 7% cap on conventional biofuels to count towards the renewable energy directive targets for final energy consumption in transport by 2020.

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