LEGISLATIVE TRAIN 08.2021 8 ENVIRONMENT, PUBLIC HEALTH AND FOOD SAFETY - ENVI

8TH ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION PROGRAMME (2021-2030) [ DEPARTURES ]

CONTENT

The Environmental Action Programmes provide a framework for the EU's overall environmental policy development. They guide the environmental policy-making by identifying priorities and setting out a long-term vision and goals. The first EAP was adopted in 1973.

To replace the 7th EAP, which run until the end of 2020, the Commission tabled on 17 October 2020 a proposal for Decision on a General Union Environment Action Programme to 2030. This new 10-year programme keeps the 2050 vision from the 7th EAP and enforces it by aiming to accelerate the EU transition to a climate-neutral, resource-efficient clean and circular economy in a just and inclusive way, fully endorsing the environmental and climate objectives of the European Green Deal. The 8th EAP should also provide a basis for the achievement of the environmental objectives of the UN Agenda 2030 and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

The 8th EAP has six thematic priority objectives in areas of:

• climate neutrality • adaptation and resilience to climate change and other environmental risks • circular economy and regenerative growth decoupling economy from resource use and environmental degradation • zero pollution ambition for a toxic free-environment • protecting and restoring biodiversity, and enhancing natural capital • environmental sustainability and reduction of the environmental pressures from production and consumption

As regards 2050 vision, 'living well, within planetary boundaries', the Commission relies on concepts such as regenerative economy, measuring economic performance beyond GDP, and using well-being as a compass for policy.

To achieve the priority objectives, the Commission proposes a stronger implementation, monitoring and review process. One of the key actions is a new monitoring framework to measure the EU's and Member States' progress in implementing the Programme's priority objectives. The Commission will be supported by the European Environment Agency and the European Chemicals Agency to assess and report on the achievements. To this end, the capacities of the two agencies will be reinforced.

Within the , the proposal has been assigned to the Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, rapporteur Grace O'Sullivan (Greens/EFA, Ireland).

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In the Council of the EU, the file is considered by the Working Party on the Environment.

Commissioner Sinkevičius presented the proposal at the Environment Council meeting on 23 October 2020. He highlighted that the new programme endorses and builds on the environmental and climate objectives of the EU green deal and provides an enabling framework for achieving these objectives. The Commission thus intends to present by the end of 2021 a set of key indicators to monitor the achievement of the Programme's objectives. Member States insisted that the emphasis has to be placed on the implementation and execution of the six objectives and pointed out the need of establishing a set of headline indicators and monitoring and reporting tools, revising the Programme in mid-2024 in relation with the achievement of the objectives, and limiting the administrative burden.

The Commission presented its proposal at the meeting of ENVI Committee on 14 January 2021. In the following debate, MEPs focused on certain aspects, such as the deadline for achieving the priority objectives, the link with the European Semester, and the way in which indicators will be identified. As regards European Semester, Member States should further integrate sustainability and environmental aspects within their national plans by developing indicators in that sense.

On 17 March 2021, the Member States approved a mandate for the Council for negotiations with the European Parliament in order to reach an agreement on the 8th EAP. Member States ask the Commission to:

• establish a list of actions for the period after the EU Green Deal's key actions are expected to have been put in place • carry out a mid-term review in 2024 • amend the 8th EAP by legislative proposal in 2025, in order to define further actions until 2030 • provide with annual check-ups, based on limited number of headline indicators, on the progress achieved and planned actions to implement Programme's priority objectives • carry out an evaluation of the 8th EAP by 31 March 2029

On 15 June, the ENVI Committee adopted its position on the 8th EAP with 60 votes to 13 and 3 abstentions.

During the July 2021 plenary session, the Parliament adopted by 518 votes to 130, with 47 abstentions, amendments to the Commission proposal. They regard the overall and the thematic priority objectives of the 8th EAP, highlighting for instance the need for a Union sustainable well-being economy, expand the set of conditions needed to meet the EAP's objectives, and list concrete actions to reach these conditions. The adopted text promotes a 'think sustainability first' approach in the development of the EU legislation and that would ensure that the environmental and climate transition leaves no one behind, helping also to reduce inequalities. The Parliament calls for the phasing out of all fossil fuel subsidies by 2025 and all other environmentally harmful subsidies by 2027. It also calls for evaluation, which takes into account the coherence of EU policies with the EAP's objectives and the cost of action and inaction. By the end of 2021, the Commission should present a single scoreboard, including headline indicators, and develop a set of 'beyond GDP' indicators by 30 June 2023. Programme monitoring should be annual, based on exchanges of views between the institutions.

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MEPs also propose a mid-term review by 31 March 2024.

The matter was referred back to the ENVI Committee for inter-institutional negotiations.

References:

• EP Legislative Observatory, Procedure file on General Union Environment Action Programme to 2030, 2020/0300(COD) • Council of the EU, 8th Environment Action Programme: Member States ready to start negotiations with Parliament, Press release, 17 March 2021 • , Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on a General Union Environment Action Programme to 2030, COM/2020/652 • European Committee of the Regions, Opinion, 8th Environment Action Programme, CDR 5234/2020 • Council of the EU, Conclusions of the Environment Council, 4 October 2019 • European Commission, Report on the evaluation of the 7th Environment Action Programme, COM/2019/233

Further reading:

• Trinomics, Study to support the development of a monitoring framework for the Eighth Environment Action Programme (8EAP), October 2020 • European Environment Agency (EEA), The European environment: State and outlook 2020 report: Knowledge for transition to a sustainable Europe (SOER 2020), December 2019 • European Parliament, EPRS, Environment action programme: Living well, within the limits of our planet, Briefing, December 2018 • European Committee of the Regions, Towards an 8th Environment Action Programme: Local and regional dimension, Study, July 2018 • European Parliament, EPRS, Implementation of the 7th Environment Action Programme: Mid-term review, Study, November 2017

Author: Dessislava Yougova, Members' Research Service, [email protected] As of 15 August 2021.

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RAPPORTEUR Grace O'SULLIVAN ENVI - PECH

HYPERLINK REFERENCES

• https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?reference=2020/0300(COD)&l=en

• https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2021/03/17/8th-environment-action-programme-member-states- ready-to-start-negotiations-with-parliament/?utm_source=dsms-auto&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=8th Environment Action Programme: Member States ready to start negotiations with Parliament

• https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1602781627860&uri=COM:2020:652:FIN

• https://cor.europa.eu/EN/our-work/Pages/OpinionTimeline.aspx?opId=CDR-5234-2020

• https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/40927/st12795-2019.pdf

• https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2019:233:FIN

• https://ec.europa.eu/environment/system/files/2021-02/8th_EAP_Monitoring_Oct_2020_final_report-pdf.pdf

• https://www.eea.europa.eu/soer-2020

• http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2018)630336

• https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/f106cce3-9535-11e8-8bc1-01aa75ed71a1

• https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_STU(2017)610998

• mailto:[email protected]

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