EU agriculture ministers will meet in Malta from Sunday 21 to Tuesday 23 May. On the last day of their meeting, they will discuss the challenges facing agriculture with regard to climate change and managing water resources.
In a paper that will guide the ministerial discussions, the Maltese Presidency of the Council of the EU underlines the need, faced with the challenges of climate change and water resources, to strengthen the role of research and to ensure better management of the demand for water. The presidency also suggests a review, if necessary, of the obligations to which farmers are currently subject and support to allow them to adapt their practices. The paper highlights, too, the need to develop risk management tools, an issue included in the reflection on the common agricultural policy after 2020.
Two European commissioners will be present and take part in Tuesday’s debate which will be chaired by Maltese Secretary of State for Agriculture Roderick Galdes: Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan and Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella, the services of whom are working together on sustainable water management.
The CAP has identified the management of water resources and climate change as two important priorities, the Presidency paper states. It points out that support is provided to promote environmentally sustainable farming practices. “Nonetheless the threat of deteriorating climatic conditions prevailing requires analysis on what other long-term measures may be required by European agriculture, in terms of enhancing its diversification and sustainability.”
Efforts on research, innovation and knowledge sharing will have to be stepped up to address the impact of climate change and management of water resources more comprehensively, the Presidency says. The first step, it says, should be to assess water availability. The paper proposes innovative, integrated and demand-centred management of water resources: user involvement in projects, monitoring, efficient irrigation methods, use of “non-conventional” (recycled and saline) water resources.
The Presidency underlines the need to provide farmers with flexible support to help them adapt to the effects of climate change and the problems of water supply.
Resilience and risk management. Lastly, the Presidency states that resilience also requires stronger risk management initiatives for agriculture. The financial sector, the Presidency says, needs to develop financial instruments such as “disaster bonds” or insurance criteria such as “climate vulnerability indices” that assess the risk of individual farms and provide the appropriate level of coverage.
At a conference organised by the European Environmental Bureau and BirdLife in Brussels on 11 May, Commissioner Hogan stated that he and Commissioner Vella had set up a working group on the sustainable management of water for EU farming. This, he said, would ensure long-term collaboration among the various commission services.
Omnibus. The Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA) will meet on Sunday 21 May to discuss the negotiations on the omnibus regulation in the wake of the amendments that were passed by the European Parliament’s agriculture committee (See EUROPE 11782). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)