TOWARDS BELGRADE-2007 |
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1. IMPORTANT DEADLINES SET BY THE FOURTH MEETING OF THE WORKING GROUP OF SENIOR OFFICIALS The fourth meeting of the WGSO took place in Geneva on 30-31
May 2007. Participants discussed the status of preparation to Belgrade-2007
and reviewed the documents prepared for the Ministerial Conference. The
documents for the WGSO meeting are available on the UNECE website There were a number of questions raised on the current documents drafts as well as comments provided by the delegates. The following important deadlines for further preparations of the Belgrade Conference documents were announced: By 15 June 2007 to be submitted to the UNECE secretariat:
By 1 July 2007 to be submitted to the UNECE secretariat:
(d) Registration for the Conference in accordance with the agreed procedure (http://www.unece.org/env/efe/wgso/Belgrade/participation.html). The overview of major deadlines for the Conference is
available on the website: Should you have questions or require further clarification, please contact UNECE Secretariat at at efe@unece.org
2. EUROPEAN COMMISSION RELEASES COMMUNICATION ABOUT FUTURE OF THE ENVIRONMENT FOR EUROPE PROCESS In May 2007, the European Commission released a Communication to the Council and the European Parliament on "Commission cooperation with the Environment for Europe Process after the 2007 Ministerial Conference in Belgrade" (COM(2007) 262 final). The document acknowledges that "the Environment for Europe process is now at a crossroad". Therefore, the document sets out the views of the European Commission on the future of the 'Environment for Europe' process, as well as its involvement in EfE related activities after Belgrade. In the Commission's view, "the EfE process has made an important contribution to the environmental transition of CEE/SEE/EECCA since 1991. However, its role has progressively decreased as other frameworks and initiatives have developed." "Today, the EU legislation and standards in the environment area cover the normative needs of its newer member States in Central and Eastern Europe. The large majority of the remaining countries in the UNECE region have established strong links with the EU through pre-accession, stabilisation and association agreements as well as the European Neighbourhood Policy Action Plans, which all promote environment protection through better environmental governance, including legislation and institutions. This bilateral cooperation between the EU and the non-EU countries of the UNECE region offers, in the Commission's view, a more direct instrument to target the environmental challenges of each country and to channel the EU assistance." "Taking into account, on the one hand, increasingly active EU bilateral environmental relations and, on the other hand, an ever-increasing globalisation of the environmental cooperation, the Commission thinks that, after the Belgrade Conference, the central role for the UNECE should be to facilitate the implementation of the UN environmental conventions in the region, notably with respect to the transboundary scope of these conventions." "Along these lines, the Commission intends to concentrate its involvement in the EfE process following the Belgrade conference in those initiatives and activities that could not be sufficiently reached through EU bilateral cooperation. More generally, in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of activities, ensure coherence with the bilateral work of the EU and optimise resource allocation, the Commission will in so far as EfE is concerned, concentrate its involvement on:
The full text of the Communication in English is available
at
3. DRAFT SUMMARY OF BELGRADE REPORT The European Environment Agency, responsible for preparation of the Belgrade State of Environment Report ahead of the upcoming Conference of Ministers "Environment for Europe" (Belgrade, 10-12 October 2007), finalized the summary of the Report. This material is addressed to decision-makers and contains key provisions of the Report. The text of the summary can be requested from David Stanners, European Environment Agency, at: Comments.Belgrade@eea.europa.eu
4. NEW WEBSITE ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT FOR EUROPE PROCESS À new website in English about the "Environment for Europe" process is now available: www.environmentforeurope.org. This website is a new information resource service made possible with the support of the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN). The website features detailed information on the sixth Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference scheduled to take place in Belgrade, Serbia, October 10-12, 2007, as well as information on the history of the "Environment for Europe" process, current mandates and organizational arrangements of implementing institutions, and summaries of completed and ongoing work implemented in various work areas of the process. For more information please contact:
5.COMPILATION OF PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THE FUTURE OF AARHUS On 1 June 2007, the Secretariat of the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters released a compilation of the public comments received on the draft elements for a long-term strategic plan for the Aarhus Convention. In all, 20 comments were submitted from 14 countries and the Council of Europe. To read these comments go to http://www.unece.org/env/pp/LTSP/Compilation_public_comments_2007_06_01.pdf For more information contact:
6. CONFERENCE: DELIVERING ENERGY EFFICIENCY Energy Charter member countries should strengthen their capacity to develop and implement energy efficiency policies if the widespread political commitment to improve energy efficiency is to be turned into a reality. This was a main conclusion arising from a Conference on 'Delivering Energy Efficiency', co-organised by the Energy Charter Secretariat and the Romanian Ministry of Economy and Finance, which took place in Bucharest on 23 May 2007. The Conference was attended by 120 participants from across the Energy Charter constituency. It provided the opportunity to analyse progress in implementing energy efficiency polices and programmes in countries subscribing to the Energy Charter's Protocol on Energy Efficiency and Related Environmental Aspects, with a focus on the experience of Southeast Europe. It examined how the liberalisation of energy markets is affecting the effectiveness and design of energy efficiency policy measures, and also generated a clearer understanding of the barriers to energy efficiency, which need to be addressed from an economic, regulatory and technological point of view, taking into account also the changing behaviour and expectations of end- users. The Bucharest Conclusions on Capacity Building in Energy Efficiency underline the need to strengthen institutional capacity, and stress importance of coordination between different parts of government, notably those responsible for energy efficiency, for environmental policy and climate change, and for economic development. For more information and text of the Bucharest Conclusions
go to
http://www.encharter.org/index.php?id=220
7.DRAFT HEALTH CHAPTER OF SEA MANUAL AVAILABLE FOR COMMENTS The Draft for Consultation of the Health Chapter of the Manual to Support Implementation of the SEA Protocol is available for comments. The third meeting of the Parties to the Espoo Convention, including the first meeting of the Signatories to the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment, commissioned the development of a manual to support implementation of the SEA Protocol. The activity is being led by REC CEE with the support of the UNECE secretariat and with inputs from WHO/Euro and a small editorial group comprising Austria, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the European Commission and UNDP/RBEC. The Draft Final Manual will be presented to the third meeting of the Signatories to the Protocol, the date of which has yet to be determined (possibly November 2007). The Draft for Consultation of the health chapter/annex is available in English in PDF at http://www.unece.org/env/eia/sea_manual/welcome.html. During the period to 15 July 2007, you are invited to submit suggested amendments to the document by email to eia.conv@unece.org
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