Brussels, 18/07/2002 (Agence Europe) - The European Environment Bureau (EEB) did not gain a favourable impression of the Spanish Presidency in the environmental arena, remarking in a press statement that its results were both poor and inconsequential. The EEB's Memorandum for the Danish Presidency is full of expectation for progress to be achieved over the next six months and lays down (just as it does at the beginning of each new Presidency) ten key actions to test the environmental performance of Denmark.
The ten important criteria are as follows: the achievement of a "global deal" at the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development; respect for the environment in the enlargement process; initiating major reform of the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP); progress on chemicals legislation; adoption of minimum standards for taxation of energy products; an effective system for environmental liability; on sustainable development, to fully include the environmental dimension in the Lisbon process and to further environmental policy integration; to ensure traceability, labelling and liability rules for the use of GMOs; improved public access to environmental information; improvement of the environmental performance of packaging.
EEB Secretary General John Hontelez said that he regretted the delays announced by the commission in presenting its proposals for a new chemicals policy but that the EEC did appreciate the Danish Environment Minister, Hans Christian Schmidt's promise to participate in an EEB-initiated conference on the subject this autumn.