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GREENBUDGETNEWS NO. 20 – 9/2008 EUROPEAN NEWSLETTER ON ENVIRONMENTAL FISCAL REFORM Founders: www.eco-tax.info www.eeb.org www.ecocouncil.dk www.levego.hu www.oegut.at Chief editor: Dr. Anselm Görres Editors: Kai Schlegelmilch, Sebastian Schmidt, Damian Ludewig, Margit Spoettle Launching conference for Green Budget Europe Brussels, September 25th 2008 Encouraged by our experiences as an unusually specialized NGO in Germany, supporting economic instruments since 1994, and by the enormous resonance and recognition we received at the GCET 2007, we are currently preparing the formation and launch of a platform to promote EFR and MBIs on the European level. This new organisation will – for the first few years at least – operate as a project within Green Budget Germany and will function as a competence centre and discussion platform, primarily addressing insiders such as the European Commission, government institutions, NGOs, industry associations, and experts. For more informations please go to: http://www.foes.de/en/GBE_Launching_Conference.html Contents 1. EDITORIAL ............................................................................................................... 2 2. GREEN BUDGET REFORM ON EU-LEVEL .............................................................. 3 3. GREEN BUDGET REFORM IN SINGLE EUROPEAN COUNTRIES ........................... 13 4. GREEN BUDGET REFORM WORLDWIDE............................................................... 17 5. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ..................................................................................... 32 6. EVENTS................................................................................................................... 35 7. LINKS AND PUBLICATIONS.................................................................................... 38 8. SPECIALS................................................................................................................ 39 9. IMPRINT ................................................................................................................. 41 Quotation of the summer Those who, for whatever reason, refuse to do their part must either be persuaded to join the effort or asked to step aside. This is such a moment. The survival of the United States of America as we know it is at risk. And even more - if more should be required - the future of human civilization is at stake. Al Gore, June 17th GREENBUDGETNEWS NO. 20 PAGE 2 OF 41 There is a consensus at the EU-COM that EHS are distortive and should be dismantled, and there are 1. EDITORIAL commitments to do so in Sustainable Develop- ment Strategies and the 6th European Action Pro- gramme and their reviews. The upcoming EU Dear Readers and Friends of GBG, Budget Review of 2008/2009 provides a window On the European level there are lots of very im- of opportunity for subsidy reform to be imple- portant questions to be answered in the second mented. half of 2008 and the beginning of 2009. These “By 2008, the Commission should put forward a questions concern e.g. the review of the European roadmap for the reform, sector by sector, of subsi- Energy-Tax-Directive and the Review of the EU- dies that have considerable negative effects on the Budget as a whole. The corresponding decisions environment and are incompatible with sustain- on their part will play a crucial role for the follow- able development, with a view to gradually elimi- ing discussions on the global scene. The majority nating them.” always needed strong precursors before it switched to new ways of action. In particular the The revision of the Energy Tax Directive is due to emerging and developping countries will under- be adopted in 2008, to ensure more targeted and standably not implement measures which put coherent use of energy taxation and the integra- (short- or middle-term) strains on their economy tion of energy efficiency and environmental as- or degrade subventions if Europe does not show pects. that the cost of doing so is lower than the cost of Green Budget Germany is taking advantage of all inaction. So the decisions which will be taken in these windows of opportunity to further the cause Europe in 2008 will have a significant impact on of Environmental Fiscal Reform, particularly by global decisions in 2009 – particularly those widening our focus to include the European per- awaited in Copenhagen in 2009. spective. As you know, new and inspirational pro- Green Budget Germany takes these opportunities jects always need an initial financial boost, and so in account and will do its best to remind the Euro- does Green Budget Europe. We thank for your pean decision-makers of the stakes in the game contributions: and the chances for a sustainable development to Account Holder: Förderverein Ökologische be taken. After several policy-papers, conferences and lobby-meetings in 2008, GBG now attacks its Steuerreform, at GLS Gemeinschaftsbank, most ambitious project in 2008 – the foundation IBAN: DE87430609678043713000, of the European MBI-Platform Green Budget BIC/ SWIFT: GENODEM1GLS. Europe. The launching conference for Green Budget Europe (GBE) will take place on Sep- As accustomed this newsletter provides you with tember 25th 2008 in Brussels. The conference, actual informations about environmentally rele- entitled vant ficsal reforms in Europe and all over the world. Beginning with a summary of an EEA- “MBIs for the Environment – Study on the taxation of aggregate materials in Prospects for Progress in the EU” Europe (p.3), over the possible creation of a Euro- will focus on dismantling Environmentally Harm- pean Climate Commissioner (p.12), over the study ful Subsidies (EHS) and the EU Energy Tax Di- from the European Commissions DG TAXUD rective. It will be organised with our conference about taxation trends in the European Union (p.9), partner, the European Environmental Bureau over the situation in Hungary (p.15) and the reac- (EEB). Other conference partners are the Euro- tion of the German Business on Sigmar Gabriels pean Commissions DG TAXUD, the Ecosocial concept of an ecological industrial policy – up to Forum Europe and the World Wide Fund for Na- the revolutionary speech of Al Gore, concerning ture. All informations regarding the conference Americas way to a succesful and sustainable fu- can be downloaded at: ture (p.17), the newsletter is filled with more and http://www.foes.de/en/GBE_Launching_Conference.ht more optimistic contributions. ml . greenbudgetnews20v10.doc 9/12/2008 GREENBUDGETNEWS NO. 20 PAGE 3 OF 41 In Chapter 4, we docoment many voices from the 2. GREEN BUDGET REFORM ON US, Canada and other anglo-saxon countries that pronounce a strong preference for ecotaxes over EU-LEVEL trading. Who but we would delight in hearing such praise for green taxes which we have been advocating since our foundation in 1994! It is true Environmental taxes on aggregate that Europe probably intruduced the EU ETS only materials in the EU: because the road to the more favored European towards sustainable construction ecotaxes was blocked by the unanimity principle. But now we have both instruments, and we are [European Commission press release, July 8th grateful for that. Perhaps in textbooks, one perfect 2008] Environmental taxes on construction mate- instrument is preferible to a combination of two or rials can be a key element in achieving better sus- more second-best instruments. Because the eco- tainability in the construction sector, says a report taxes we have in Europe are a multitude of com- presented today by the European Environment promise models, very few of them are pure carbon Agency. The study reviews taxation schemes for taxes. extractive activities in the Czech Republic, Italy, Sweden and the United Kingdom, focusing on a But is'n it here like this in most fields of economic EUR 15.2 billion industry producing essential ma- policy? Central banks combine price and quantity terials for the construction sector. instruments, they control interest rates, but they also buy and sell assets. Labour market policies The aggregates industry contributes significantly usually combine several, if not many instruments. to Europe's economy, where 3 billion tonnes of Taken all in all, more instruments give us more sand, gravel and rock are released onto the mar- options, and our task is not too favour one over ket every year. the other, but to combine all of them as intelli- Mining activities have considerable impacts on gently as possible. the environment, as materials are extracted di- rectly from the ground in surface excavations, Undoubtedly, green taxes and trading are the su- such as quarries or pits. More importantly, extrac- preme deities in the temple of market-based in- tion of aggregates can substantially alter the land- struments, and each of them has its particular scape and affect groundwater reserves. There are charme. But they can reign in perfect divine coex- also associated impacts in terms of energy use istence and we should not forget that there are from the extraction and transportation of these other gods and godesses in that temple. We should materials. honour and employ them all. This is one of the main reasons GBG changed their German name While the study acknowledges that there is poten- from Förderverein Ökologische Steuerreform to tial to extend taxation in the area of natural re- Forum Ökologisch-Soziale Marktwirtschaft. The source management to other sectors, it also re- challenge to protect the global climate is simply flects that the four countries surveyed in the report