Europe must do more to achieve Gothenburg environment targets, EU ministers agree
Europe needs to do more to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation, EU environment ministers agreed at an informal meeting in Sønderborg, Denmark, from 19 to 21 July. A common understanding emerged from the meeting that insufficient progress has been made towards achieving the objectives set at the Gothenburg Summit of June 2001 to break the link between increased production and problems such as climate change and declining biodiversity. Ministers also agreed that further work is needed to improve the integration of environmental considerations into sectoral policies such as transport, energy, industry and agriculture. But Danish Environment Minister Hans Christian Schmidt remained upbeat, saying: 'Sunday's consultations reaffirmed that the EU has a huge potential. The EU may become a region taking the lead in terms of decoupling economic growth from increased environmental impact.' Several tools were suggested to help the EU achieve its sustainable development objectives. These include increased use of economic instruments to encourage technological innovation, reduce pollution in a cost effective way and ensure implementation of the 'polluter pays' principle. Ministers also noted a need to reduce subsidies and tax exemptions in some sectors that have a negative impact on the environment. They said the process should begin with a review of subsidies that counteract the sustainable use of energy and sustainable agriculture and fisheries. The development of an integrated product policy covering the whole life cycle of products from the extraction of raw materials to the management of waste is also necessary, ministers agreed.