Meeting of EU environment ministers ends with optimism on NECs

No important agreements were reached at the low-key meeting of the Council of Ministers, but the Portuguese argue that several EU member states which have previously taken a hard line against the European Commission’s proposals for air pollutant limits (see related story) – the EC’s proposals are tougher than those agreed last year in a UN protocol (see related story) – are willing to compromise.

As a result, hopes are now higher that EU environment ministers will reach a decision at their next meeting in June that brings them closer to the EC’s and European Parliament’s views (see related story).

Also under discussion at the 30 March meeting were:

• endocrine disrupters – the Council has asked the EC to report on its work at the beginning of 2001 (see related story)
• review of the Fifth EU Environment Programme and priorities for the Sixth Programme
• the EC’s White Paper on Environmental Liability (see related story)
• the upcoming international biodiversity convention conference in Nairobi
• the EC’s work on developing environmental indicators

The Council of Ministers set out what they would like to see prioritised in the EU’s Sixth Environmental Programme, citing:

• climate change
• biodiversity
• efficient use and management of natural resources
• waste management
• environmental security, specifically the reduction in environmental risks posed by chemicals and genetically modified organisms
• soil degradation and desertification