Strasbourg, 15/01/2002 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday the Parliament will be discussing Finnish Social Democrat, Riitta Myller's report on the Council's "Joint Position" on the sixth Community action programme on the environment, in which she calls on the European plenary to broaden the remit of this programme during its second reading. Ms Myller considers that this environmental policy guide for the next ten years must be made sharper by making its objectives more easily quantifiable, as well as making the time-tables more tighter. The Environmental Committee was pleased that the Council had taken on board a number of Parliamentary amendments voted for in the first reading, but it will still be presenting around forty amendments that the Council has not yet tackled, which will be voted for next week in Strasbourg. The report is emphasising the need to introduce stricter measures on pesticides, exposure to dangerous chemical products and the reduction of pollution due to the greenhouse effect and noise.
The Myller report is calling for: a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 1% each year until 2020, compared to the level reached in 1990 (the year used as a reference point for the Kyoto Protocol on climate change); fixing 2010 as a deadline for the total amount of co-generation (combined production of electricity and heat) to reach 18% of electricity production; an end to the exposure of people and environment to dangerous chemical products by 2020; the elimination of persistent and non-bio-degradable products from the water supplies; a reduction in ten years of a fifth of all waste products based on 2000 levels; the reduction in the number of people exposed to noise by 10% over the next ten years and by 20% over the next eighteen years; the implementing by 2004 of a new Community policy on chemical products; the creation in 2002 of an inventory of aid that is potentially harmful to the environment, with a view to banning those incentives that have a negative environmental impact, by 2005; the development of thematic strategies on climate change, nature and bio-diversity, the environment and health, natural resources and waste, with a deadline of three years after the adoption of the programme (the Council supports a deadline of five years); the introduction of a co-decision making procedure for the elaboration of thematic strategies in order to gain the full participation of the Parliament and Council in the process of taking the action plan further.