EU Environment Policy

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1 EU Policy Andrea VETTORI Deputy Head of Unit ENV.D1 Land Use & Management Directorate General Alpeuregio Summer School Bruxelles

2 Summary 1. Global challenges 2. State of Europe's 3. EU environment policy & its priorities

3 1. Global challenges

4 Natural resources (1) Competition for resources (including raw materials) increases, resource scarcities appear, prices go up - this will affect the European economy

5 Natural resources (2) Growth of the World Economy 2050: 9 billion 2011: 7 billion Population to reach 9 billion by 2050 By 2050, world economy projected to nearly quadruple, with growing demand for energy and natural resources Two billion middle income earners in 'developing countries' are expected to triple their consumption by 2020 If the growing global population matched OECD consumption by 2050, world consumption would be 15 times bigger than now

6 Natural resources (3) Over the 20th century, the world increased its fossil fuel use by a factor of 12, and material extraction grew by a factor of 8 Demand for food, feed and fibre may increase by 70% by % of the world s major ecosystems that help produce these resources have already been degraded or are used unsustainably The World Business Council for Sustainable Development estimates that by 2050 we will need a 4 to 10 fold increase in resource efficiency, with significant changes needed by 2020

7 Cost of inaction (1) OECD al Outlook to 2050 (OECD 2012): Progress on an incremental, piecemeal, business-as-usual basis in the coming decades will not be enough. Pressures on the environment from population growth and rising living standards will outpace progress in pollution abatement and resource efficiency. As a result, continued degradation and erosion of natural environmental capital are expected to 2050 and beyond, with the risk of irreversible changes that could endanger two centuries of rising living standards. Well-designed policies can reverse the trends projected in the Baseline scenario, safeguarding long-term economic growth and the well-being of future generations.

8 Cost of inaction (2) Natural systems have tipping points beyond which damaging change becomes irreversible (e.g. species loss, climate change, groundwater depletion, land degradation). "The benefits of strong and early action far outweigh the economic costs of not acting" (Stern Review, 2006). Action => 1% global PDB each year until 2050; Inaction => up to 20% of global GDP/year Biodiversity: 2008 financial crisis has cost around $1.000-$1.500 billion to Wall Street, but every year we lose a natural capital of $2-$5.000 billion." (Pavan Sukhdev, TEEB Leader, ex Director Deutsche Bank) Transport: the environmental impacts of transport and congestion are estimated to have a cost equivalent to up to 5% of GDP. Air pollution: causes in Europe the loss of ca. 150 million working days a year and health costs estimated at between 50 and 100bn a year.

9 2. State of Europe's

10 EEA SOER 2015 In 2015, Europe stands roughly halfway between the initiation of EU environmental policy in the early 1970s and the EU's 7 th Action Programme 2050 vision of living well within the limits of the planet. Looking back on the last 40 years, the implementation of environment and climate policies has delivered substantial benefits in terms of improvements in environmental, health and living standards of citizens; jobs and growth; and creation of innovation opportunities. Further implementation efforts by countries can increase these positive trends. Living well within ecological limits requires fundamental transitions in the systems of production and consumption that are the root cause of environmental and climate pressures. Achieving this commitment can put Europe at the frontier of science and technology but calls for a greater sense of urgency and more courageous actions. Such transitions require profound changes in dominant institutions, practices, technologies, policies, lifestyles and thinking.

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12 The Life-cycle Extraction: 16 tons The Life-cycle Growing technosphere To physical stock: 10 tons Disposal: 6 tons Source Sink Threats to ecosystem services!

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14 Waste as a resource Moving up the waste hierarchy Prevention Re-use Recycling Recovery Disposal

15 Example A Mine of the Future Urban mining 1t of good ore contains 5g of gold 1t mobile phones contains 150g of gold! => ecodesign + ricycling

16 EU Biodiversity Strategy to Mid Term Review Headline target: Halt the loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystem services in the EU by 2020, restore them in so far as possible, and contribute to averting global biodiversity loss Continuing biodiversity loss and degradation of ecosystem services in the EU and globally Serious implications for the capacity of biodiversity to meet human needs in the future Local improvements as result of action on the ground Need to scale up action for a measurable impact on the overall negative trends

17 EU Biodiversity Strategy to Mid Term Review Poor conservation status SPECIES Overall, 23% of the EU-level species assessments have a favourable conservation status and 4% of species are unfavourable but improving; 20% are stable, 22% are deteriorating and 14% are without a known trend. Changes ( vs ) in conservation status for habitats of Community interest associated with AGRICULTURAL ECOSYSTEMS (grassland and cropland) Change ( vs ) in conservation status for habitats of Community interest associated with FOREST ECOSYSTEM HABITATS Overall, 16% of the EUlevel habitat types assessments have a favourable conservation status and 4% are improving; 33% are unfavourable but stable. A further 30% are still deteriorating, which is a serious cause for concern. MARINE ENVIRONMENT As a result of multiple pressures, marine species and ecosystems continue declining across Europe's seas

18 WHY DOES BIODIVERSITY MATTER? An ethical duty: to conserve the sheer variety of life on earth An environmental asset: healthy ecosystems play a vital role in regulating the environment eg a major tool for climate change adaptation An economic imperative: ecosystem goods and services provide a whole range of direct and indirect economic benefits-

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24 "Green Infrastructure" "Nature-based solutions" "Ecosystem approach" "Multifunctionality"

25 GI is already a reality

26 but still a lot to do Resilience and multifunctionality

27 3. EU environment policy & its priorities

28 : an EU priority 1. Union policy on the environment shall contribute to pursuit of the following objectives: preserving, protecting and improving the quality of the environment, protecting human health, prudent and rational utilisation of natural resources, Article 191 (TFUE) promoting measures at international level to deal with regional or worldwide environmental problems, and in particular combating climate change. 2. Union policy on the environment ( ) shall be based on the precautionary principle and on the principles that preventive action should be taken, that environmental damage should as a priority be rectified at source and that the polluter should pay.

29 7 th EAP The new General Union Action Programme to 2020 (7 th EAP)

30 The 7 th EAP VISION The following 2050 vision is intended to help guide action up to and beyond 2020: "In 2050, we live well, within the planet's ecological limits. Our prosperity and healthy environment stem from an innovative, circular economy where nothing is wasted and where natural resources are managed sustainably, and biodiversity is protected, valued and restored in ways that enhance our society's resilience. Our low-carbon growth has long been decoupled from resource use, setting the pace for a safe and sustainable global society".

31 The 7 th EAP

32 Thematic priority objectives PO 1: to protect, conserve and enhance the Union s natural capital Biodiversity Water, Marine Land and soil Forests Nutrient cycle PO 2: to turn the Union into a resourceefficient, green and competitive lowcarbon economy Climate mitigation SCP, Waste Eco-innovation Industrial emissions Water stress PO 3: to safeguard the Union s citizens from environment-related pressures and risks to health and well-being Chemicals Air quality Drinking and bathing water quality Noise Climate adaptation

33 Enabling priority objectives PO 4: to maximise the benefits of Union environment legislation by improving implementation PO 5: to improve the knowledge and evidence base for Union environment policy PO 6: to secure investment for environment and climate policy and address environmental externalities PO 7: to improve environmental integration and policy coherence Compliance information Partnership agreements Inspections and surveillance Complaints handling Access to justice Knowledge gaps Emerging risks Streamlining data and information EHS, taxation, MBIs European Semester Private/public sector investment GDP and beyond Env. conditionalities and incentives in other policies Impact assessment

34 Spatial priority objectives PO 8: to enhance the sustainability of the Union s cities Sustainability criteria for cities Better access to financing PO 9: to increase the Union s effectiveness in addressing international environmental and climate-related challenges Implement Rio + 20 outcomes Engage more effectively in international env. & climate negotiations Ratify outstanding MEAs Strategic cooperation with partner countries Reducing env. impact of EU consumption on partner countries/regions

35 What's new since 2013? => 2014: new European Commission - President Juncker 10 priorities => 2015: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

36 Juncker Commission 1. Jobs, Growth and Investment Stimulating investment for the purpose of job creation 2. Digital Single Market Bringing down barriers to unlock online opportunities 3. Energy Union and Climate Making energy more secure, affordable and sustainable 4. Internal Market A deeper and fairer internal market 5. A Deeper and Fairer Economic and Monetary Union Stability for the single currency, solidity of public finances and social fairness in implementing structural reforms 6. A balanced EU-US Free Trade Agreement Freer trade without sacrificing Europe s standards 7. Justice and Fundamental Rights Upholding the rule of law and linking up Europe s justice systems 8. Migration Towards a European agenda on Migration 9. A Stronger Global Actor Bringing together the tools of Europe s external action 10. Democratic change Making the EU more democratic

37 More information DG : SOER 2015 (European Agency): The EU Action Programme (7th EAP): Resource efficiency: Circular economy: Summary of EU al policy/legislation: andrea.vettori@ec.europa.eu Thank you for your attention!