Commission strategy to combat acidification
The European Commission has put forward a proposal for a European Union strategy to combat acidification, put forward by Mrs. Ritt Bjerregaard, Commissioner responsible for the environment. The strategy will, by 2010, reduce significantly the extent of the areas in the European Union where the tolerance of sensitive ecosystems to acidity is exceeded. The main elements of the strategy proposed include: - Establishment of national emission ceilings for each acid rain pollutant; - Ratification of the UN protocol on further reductions of sulphur emissions; - Proposal for a directive limiting the sulphur content of heavy fuel oils; - Review of the large combustion plant directive (Dir. 88/609/EEC); - Designation of the Baltic Sea and the North Sea as so called sulphur dioxide control areas; - Promotion of cost-effective measures to reduce emissions in Central and Eastern European countries. Current predictions indicate that the extent of affected areas in 2010 would, in the absence of the strategy, be 8.7 million hectares. With the strategy this figure will be reduced to 4.5 million hectares. The strategy put forward by the Commission should be seen as an interim step towards the complete elimination of the problem of acidification in the European Union. The strategy presently being put forward by the Commission has been prepared in response to a request from the Environment Council of December 1995. Within this context, the Commission has also agreed two specific actions which form an integral part of the strategy: - A proposal for a Directive to reduce the emissions of sulphur dioxide resulting from the burning of certain types of liquid fuels; - A proposal for a Council Decision whereby the European Union would ratify the protocol on further reductions of sulphur under the UN ECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution. Commenting on the adoption of the acidification strategy and the associated proposals, Commissioner Bjerregaard noted that: "At the present time, a significant proportion of the natural habitats in the European Union are subjected to levels of acid deposition which exceed their tolerance limits: this situation is not sustainable and we must aim to eliminate the problem of acidification entirely. The strategy put forward by the Commission is a significant step towards achieving that objective".