The EU’s environment and/or climate ministers from the EU-27 Member States will meet for the first time in person in Luxembourg on Thursday 10 June for a meeting of the Environment Council under the Portuguese Presidency, which will be dominated by public debates on adapting to climate change, the EU’s Zero Pollution Action Plan, and batteries and battery waste.
The EU’s strategy for adapting to climate change is the only dossier on the agenda for adoption of a formal decision. For the other issues, this last session under the Portuguese Presidency should allow the torch to be passed to the Slovenian Presidency, which will begin its mandate on 1 July. This is the programme for the session, chaired by the Portuguese Minister for the Environment and Climate Action, João Pedro Matos Fernandes.
Strategy for adapting to climate change.
EU ministers are expected to approve the agreement, already endorsed by the Member States’ ambassadors to the EU, on the EU Council conclusions concerning the new EU strategy for adapting to the unavoidable consequences of climate change (see EUROPE 12727/3).
These conclusions highlight, among other things, the need for increased international action, the importance of increasing synergies between sectors, the role of local actors, and the value of digital and nature-based solutions.
New regulation on batteries and battery waste. Ministers will be briefed about the progress report on the new regulation to develop a European market for sustainable batteries (regulation based on Article 114 ‘Internal Market’ of the TFEU and amending Directive 2006/66/EC on batteries and accumulators and their waste, which has a dual legal basis: Article 114 and Article 192 (Environment).
The dossier was the subject of a policy debate in March (see EUROPE 12681/5).
This dossier, which gave rise to intense work under the Portuguese Presidency (19 working group meetings), made it possible to identify the main issues on which progress should be made, such as: - the legal basis; - sustainability and safety requirements; - articulation with EU ‘waste’ legislation, including collection targets; - due diligence. Delegations who wish to do so will be able to express their concerns.
Zero Pollution Action Plan. In the afternoon, the ministers will have a first exchange of views on the Zero Pollution Action Plan, unveiled on 12 May by the Commission to pave the way for the EU’s transition to zero pollution of air, soil and water by 2050, with targets to be reached by 2030 to achieve the goal of a non-toxic environment for human health and natural ecosystems in the long term (see EUROPE 12719/4).
This action plan is a key element of the ‘European Green Deal’ which aims, through a holistic approach, to engage all sectors of activity, all authorities, and the whole of society to change their practices for a paradigm shift and thus contribute to solving the dual crisis of climate change and biodiversity, which is why a Stakeholder Platform for Zero Pollution ambition has just been launched (see EUROPE 12734/29).
The exchange will focus on the level of ambition of the Commission’s proposed approach and the actions to be taken to implement it, a senior EU diplomat said on Monday 7 June.
Miscellaneous legislative items. Ministers will be briefed by the Presidency on the progress of work on: - the 8th Environmental Action Programme (8th EAP), for which the European Parliament will not have its negotiating mandate until July; - the amendment of the EU ‘Aarhus’ Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1367/2006) to improve public access to justice in environmental matters, on which interinstitutional negotiations have just started and are expected to continue around 20-24 June under the Portuguese Presidency before being handed over to the Slovenian Presidency (see EUROPE 12734/16).
Other miscellaneous items. At the request of delegations, ministers will be briefed on: - the alliance for decarbonisation of transport and prevention of fraud in the biofuel sector (Netherlands); - a meeting of the International Water Convention (Estonia).
In this context, the Slovenian delegation will present the work programme for its rotating Presidency of the EU Council. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang with Damien Genicot)