Study on voluntary agreements in the field of the environment

The European Commission, DG III, has published call for tender for the completion of a study on voluntary agreements, concluded between industry and public authorities, in the field of the environment. The study must take into consideration that: - The fifth Community action...

The European Commission, DG III, has published call for tender for the completion of a study on voluntary agreements, concluded between industry and public authorities, in the field of the environment.

The study must take into consideration that:

- The fifth Community action programme in the field of the environment includes, in its recommendations, the encouragement, where appropriate, of voluntary agreements and other forms of self-regulation;

- The Commission Communication on industrial competitiveness and protection of the environment points out that voluntary agreements can achieve similar results to legislation by implementing the desired objectives more speedily, and with more flexibility, provided that they can be effectively enforced;

- In a number of Member States, voluntary agreements are already used, in one form or another, as a tool in environmental policy.

The objective of the study is to:

- Provide a survey of voluntary agreements in the field of the environment concluded, at national or regional level, between industry (industry organizations and/or individual companies) and public authorities in the Member States of the EU;

- Identify and analyze the main characteristics and functions of different types of voluntary agreements;

- Further identify conditions for the success and/or failure of voluntary agreements as policy tools to implement environmental objectives and to promote an industrial strategy towards the protection of environment.

For the purposes of the study, voluntary agreements only cover commitments, undertaken by industry, which are the result of negotiations with public authorities and/or are explicitly recognized by the authorities.
Requests for tender documentation (terms of reference and workplan) should be sent to:

European Commission
Directorate General III
Mr Jacques Soenens
Unit III/B-5
Impact of Environmental Factors on Industrial Activity
200 rue de la Loi
B-1049 Brussels
Tel. [phone]; Fax + Fax [phone]