The European support to sustainable development and adaptation to climate change

Résumé du document

"The Union shall work for the sustainable development of Europe based on balanced economic growth and price stability, a highly competitive social market economy, aiming at full employment and social progress, and a high level of protection and improvement of the quality of the environment" stipulates article 3.3 of the Lisbon Treaty. This statement placed on the top of the 2007 Treaty shows that the environmental issue is one of the EU's highest priorities: the European institutions are very much concerned with the environment. Indeed, the EU was a pioneer player concerning the actions on a large scale for safeguarding environment: political measures to limit the impacts of climate change and to promote sustainable development were taken pretty early in the European Union. This important environmental concern is clearly expressed in the EU's web page which is dealing with environment: "The EU has some of the highest environment standards in the world, developed over decades to address a wide range of issues. Today the main priorities are combating climate change, preserving biodiversity, reducing health problems from pollution and using natural resources more responsibly". According to this, the EU seems to be really propping up sustainable development and adaptation to climate change. It makes us wonder, how does this support take shape in the European development policy? First, we will see in which way that the environmental paradigm integrated to European policies and then, we will try to evaluate the strengths and drawbacks of the EU environmental policy.

Extraits

[...] First, there was a necessity to define who would be able and entitled to act against climate change. The Commission answered this question in its June 2007 Paper, insisting on a multilevel approach of this challenge. Indeed, the paper asserted that “multi-governance is therefore emerging on climate change adaptation involving all actors from the individual citizens and public authorities to the EU level. Action should be taken at the most appropriate level and be complementary, based on joint partnerships”. According to the Commission, actions at the national level shall seek to improve disaster or crisis management and developing multi-sector adaptation strategies ; actions at the regional level shall concentrate upon the question of land use and local actions shall be promoted due to the detail knowledge on the local nature and human conditions of the actors. [...]

[...] First, the paper insisted on the necessity to integrate the concern on adaptation to climate change in existing and upcoming legislation and in existing funding programs. Then, the Commission stressed on the necessity for the EU integrate this adaptation in its external action by widening dialogue on that question with all countries whatever their economic situation but also by enhancing its capacity to deal with conflicts linked with natural resources and by boosting the global trade of environmental-friendly goods. Third, the paper advocated for a broadened scientific knowledge on the consequences of climate change, which needed higher investments in R&D. [...]

[...] According to the author, in order to fulfill these conditions, the EU shall reform the system of emissions permits so as too create a more integrated and coherent system. As a result, the energy policy is a good example to show that a large number of actors have suggested precise modifications targeting to improve the European environmental as a whole: they provide a sectorial approach of the solution designed to improve this policy. Conclusion To conclude, the European Union has integrated the environmental concern: the European support to sustainable development and to climate change is something real. [...]

[...] However, the Commission' s last report, published in 2009 was far less optimistic and positive since it stressed the fact that “despite considerable efforts to include action for sustainable development in major EU policy areas, unsustainable trends persists and the EU still need to intensify its efforts”. Concerning climate change and clean energy, the Commission welcomed the ambitious targets defined in December 2008 with the Climate and Energy Package but also highlights global climate change policies are not applied quickly, global greenhouse gas emissions will be in 2020 at least 60% higher than in 19905. [...]

[...] What is more, the EU shall try to demonstrate its determination to reach the objective it defined itself in order to gain credibility. Then, as far as the adaptation of the EU to climate change is concerned, environmental NGOs call for a more transparent and democratic decision-making process that would involve the civil society in a more significant way. Furthermore, environmental NGOs also stressed the necessity of an integrated and coherent approach of the European adaptation to climate change: the EU shall seek to harmonize national environmental strategies in order to improve the efficiency of its own environmental strategy. [...]