The JRC and EEA join forces for a better environment The European Environment Agency and the European Commission's Joint Research Centre welcomed in a new era this October when they pledged to join forces for the benefit of the environment. Herbert Allgeier, Director General of the JRC, and Domingo Jiménez-Beltrán, Executive Dir... The European Environment Agency and the European Commission's Joint Research Centre welcomed in a new era this October when they pledged to join forces for the benefit of the environment. Herbert Allgeier, Director General of the JRC, and Domingo Jiménez-Beltrán, Executive Director of the EEA, have now signed a new memorandum of understanding between the two organisations, which covers scientific and technical cooperation on the environment. The cooperation is seen as appropriate because the EEA provides information of direct use for policy makers and the public, while the JRC, as a Commission service, functions as a centre of scientific and technological reference for the Union. The two directors spoke of the benefits of this collaboration in helping to improve the links between knowledge and decision making in response to European and international commitments, such as the Kyoto agreement. Both also emphasised the importance of providing support to policy making through dedicated activities related to issues such as climate change and monitoring chemicals of concern and their effects on the environment, as well as the protection and recuperation of Europe's natural resources, space and land. The two organisations will collaborate to build up more appropriate monitoring and assessments of chemical pathways and exposures for humans and the environment, says the JRC. Another important task they plan to work on together is updating current mapping systems to reflect changes in European land use. The joint work programme will be finalised in three months and should include the development of a spatial dissemination programme for progress in research, technology and outlooks, according to a statement from the JRC. 'The two organisations aim (to) improve the reach of information from technical knowledge and monitoring data to policy relevant information, for the benefit of the European Union, the Member States and the international community', reads a JRC statement on the topic. The agreement comes at a significant time for environmental legislation with December's Helsinki summit looming on the horizon. There, Prime Ministers are expected to discuss strategies for sustainable development, which the EEA-JRC collaboration will surely contribute towards.
