More needed as EU does its bit for planet

By Emily Smith

Date: 17/11/05

Europeans have done a lot to protect the environment over recent decades but there is still plenty of work to do, according to a draft document currently being discussed by the European Commission.

The so-called thematic strategy on resource use looks at current consumption of resources, from fuel to fish, and suggests ways of bringing these down over the next 25 years. It is scheduled to be adopted by the commissioners on 30 November.

The picture painted by the draft strategy offers some grounds for optimism on the future of the planet. Over recent decades, it says, EU air and water quality have improved, more and more people and businesses recycle their waste, and - confounding scare stories circulating 30 years ago - the world has not yet run out of fossil fuels. Individual resource use has remained steady at 16 tonnes per person.

But the document predicts that current consumption patterns are still too high to halt "irreversible environmental damage". Mining and fishing are areas of particular concern, and the draft notes that EU built-up areas have grown by 20% in the last 20 years. The challenge it sets Europeans is to break the link between economic growth and damage to the environment by 2030.

The strategy's main proposal is to set up a group of national and Commission officials, along with other interested parties, to help EU countries develop a more environmentally sustainable approach to resource use. At the same time it would set up an international panel with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), to advise both the EU and developing countries on sustainable resource use.

Most of the actions suggested by the strategy are, however, put off to a future date. Member states are asked each to draw up a national plan "on the sustainable use of natural resources", but the plans are voluntary and no deadline is given. The Commission says it will produce guidelines on measuring progress towards greener resource use by 2008.

The 2002 EU 6th environmental action plan, which sketched out the need for a resources strategy, said the proposal should contain use and efficiency "goals and targets". The current draft, however, says that, based on existing knowledge, targets will not be possible for another 5-10 years.

Katarina Molin of Assurre, the sustainable resource use lobby, said the report was "unlikely to make many political waves". "The thinking behind the strategy is great, but we are worried about how to get member states interested in it in this format," she said.

In particular, Molin feared the resources strategy might be sidelined by national governments grappling with the related - but much tougher - waste and recycling strategy due for publication on the same day.

Melissa Shinn of the European Envrironmental Bureau agreed with Assurre that the strategy was not ambitious enough, adding: "It can be seen as a preparation for a real strategy...but it does not give us any indication on if and when the real strategy will then be produced."

Barbara Helfferich of the European Commission argued that the strategy was a "wise move" and an important first step. "It is not our intention to burden member states but to create a basis on which to build. We don't yet even have a clear understanding of what we mean by the sustainable use of natural resources."

She added that huge differences between EU countries, in terms of research and eco-efficiency, meant it was "much too early" to set targets: "at this stage that would discourage the less efficient countries". She pointed out that the strategy was meant to cover the next 25 years and will be reviewed every five years.

Article anticipates the adoption of the European Commission's Thematic Strategy on resource use, expected for 30 November 2005. The report was to look at current consumption of resources, from fuel to fish, and to suggest ways of bringing these down over the next 25 years.