Commission to be firm on environmental targets
European Commission proposals for national emissions will go much further than the levels planned by the individual Member States, according to a report of the EU's Economic and Social Committee. The Committee's opinion on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on national emission ceilings for certain atmospheric pollutants and also on a proposal for the same in relation to ozone in ambient air, is that there need to be interim measures in place by 2010. This is due to the lengthy time frame required to achieve the desired 'no adverse effects' scenario from national emissions. It was decided that the most efficient way to address these two issues was in a joint manner, as this would provide both synergies and would also provide a more cost-effective approach. The opinion was adopted by 96 votes to two with three abstentions.