Green contracts plan aims to meet emissions target

By Anna McLauchlin

Date: 12/05/05

Public authorities could be forced to allocate a certain quota of their transport contracts to greener vehicles under plans being considered by the European Commission's transport department (DG Tren).

A draft of the initiative has already been sent to stakeholders, including public authorities, environmentalists and industry and a proposal is planned for July.

According to the Commission, legislative action on public contracts - known as public procurement - could add to the drive to bring down harmful emissions and carbon dioxide levels.

As a result, it is proposing to oblige public authorities to ensure that a certain percentage - the Commission suggests 25% - of their annual road transport vehicle procurements are dedicated to clean and energy efficient vehicles.

The proposal would also force member states that are failing to comply with EU air quality limits to allocate contracts for cleaner transport proportionate to the number of years that it has breached the limits.

Air quality rules came into force in January 2005 but some member states are already having trouble keeping their emissions levels within the limit levels and have had to restrict the free circulation of vehicles as a result.

Independent transport service providers would also be covered by the proposal to ensure fair competition in transport service markets.

The proposal would encourage authorities to select those vehicles running on technologies funded by EU programmes such as biofuels, hydrogen or electricity and would receive financial support for higher procurement costs of cleaner vehicles.

The Commission plans to publish a proposal by the summer break, which could take the form of a non-binding communication, a recommendation or legislative proposal.

But in a stakeholder meeting on 20 April the initiative received a big thumbs-down from all sides.

"The Commission can recommend certain pollution limits but it should be done via a technology neutral approach," said one environmentalist.

Ulrich Weber at the International Association of Public Transport said that the proposal might have a counterproductive effect on air quality.

"The fear is that there will be extra costs involved in obliging authorities to buy certain technologies and it is not yet clear who will have to cover these," he said.

"If authorities have to decrease their budget because of having to spend more money on lower emission vehicles, they may not be able to improve their public transport services. This is contrary to the aim of encouraging more people to switch from their private cars, which will allow us to reach the air quality limits more easily."

The previous Commission presented a similar idea to stakeholders in July 2003 but it was never followed up.

Sources say that the executive is now trying to push the issue ahead before the head of DG Tren, François Lamoureux, leaves his current Commission job.

Lamoureux, who has been a vocal supporter of the initiative, is expected to change posts this year.

Under Commission rules, the director-general and the commissioner responsible should not be of the same nationality, and, since Frenchman Jacques Barrot is the transport commissioner, Lamoureux is to be given a new portfolio.

Article reports on a European Commission initiative force public authorities to allocate a certain quota of their transport contracts to greener vehicles.

European Commission: DG Environment: Policies: Industry and Technology: The greening of public procurement http://ec.europa.eu/comm/environment/gpp/index.htm

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