Brussels, 20/09/2000 (Agence Europe) - To respond to the requirements of the Amsterdam Treaty regarding sustainable development, the Commission recommends integrating environmental concerns in the Union's economic policy. Its communication to Parliament and the Council, adopted on Wednesday on the joint initiative of Commissioners Pedro Solbes (Economic and Monetary Affairs) and Margot Wallstroem (Environment), rejects the argument by which a high level of environmental protection would necessarily act to the detriment of European competitiveness. It claims, on the contrary, that an approach to European environmental policy which used the market forces involved in many environmental problems is a means to attain the objectives assigned by the European Summit of Lisbon of making of the Community the most competitive and dynamic in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth.. the new approach should be gradual and accompanied by structural measures to help sectors faced with the greatest difficulties in the transition period. The Commission proposes that the EcoFin Council include the environmental impact of economic activity in the multilateral surveillance exercise of the structural reforms, so that the general guidelines of economic policies may be fully incorporated in the goals of "environmental integration". It considers, moreover, that examination, at regular intervals, of public finances from the point of view of their quality and "sustainability" should take account of the way tax and budgetary policies may have an impact on the environment.