Brussels, 21/12/2012 (Agence Europe) - At the Environment Council of 17 December, many of the Environment Ministers of the 27 recommended getting rid of subsidies which are harmful to the environment and promoting energy efficiency as ways of “greening” the European semester, the annual exercise of coordinating and monitoring economic and structural reform policies. Some of them even called for resource efficiency indicators. Their preliminary discussions on the analysis of growth 2013 aimed to prepare for their contribution to the spring European Council. The Irish Presidency has already announced that investing in growth which is favourable to employment and in the resources of Europe would be a priority and that it would pay particular attention to the potential of Europe's natural resources, on land and at sea (“blue growth”) and to the relaunch of the green economy agenda as a driving force for sustainable, intelligent growth.
“We want a coherent approach to economic governance. In the Treaty of the EU, Article 3 on sustainable development lays down three pillars. The environmental pillar needs to be reinforced. Last year, the recommendation was to reduce tax on work. This time, we aim to remove harmful subsidies and to promote the efficiency of energy and resources. It remains to be seen what will be included in the national programmes”, said Janez Potocnik, the Commissioner for the Environment.
Connie Hedegaard, the Climate Action Commissioner, agreed: “we are doing all in our power to ensure that we do not forget that Europe is not faced with just one crisis (the financial crisis: Ed) but with three, including the climate crisis and the crisis of resources. If all of the ministers go back home with this message, there is a chance that the heads of state and finance ministers will understand this message” (our translation throughout). (AN/transl.fl)