14/04/2008 (Agence Europe) - As part of the Committee of the Regions (CoR) plenary session on Thursday 10 April, CoR president, Luc Van den Brande and European Commissioner for energy, Andris Piebalgs, welcomed the success of the Covenant of Mayors, given that since its launch on 29 January (EUROPE 9590), the initiative had already received the support of 140 local and regional authorities in Europe. By supporting this pact, which aims to get EU citizens to directly participate in the fight against climate change, the authorities, mainly the borough councils, are making a commitment to going beyond the 20% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2020. The text of the Covenant of Mayors is subject to a consultation phase until 30 April. (E.H.)