Fitness Check of environmental monitoring and reportingMIG-P meeting

4 Dec 2015

Joachim D'Eugenio Steve WhiteDG EnvironmentEuropean Commission

Better Regulation and the environmental acquis

• May 2015 package on Better Regulation• REFIT Platform• External members on the Regulatory Scrutiny Board• New guidelines for Evaluation and Impact Assessment• Emphasis on consultation

• DG Environment has REFIT evaluation commitment:• Environmental Liability Directive, INSPIRE evaluations in 2015• Fitness checks on Nature and EMAS and Ecolabel in 2016 plus

Evaluations on Noise, VOCs, EPRTR• Continual stream for future including Chemicals FC

• New, horizontal review of reporting

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ENV F.1 2

Extract from the Better Regulation Communication of 19 May 2015

• Launch a broad review of reporting requirements to see how burdens can be alleviated. This review will have a particularly strong focus on areas where stakeholders have recently indicated their concerns, such as agriculture, energy, environment and financial services.

• Cooperate with certain Member States which are examining the best ways to ensure compliance with EU law at national level and have initiated a review of how well EU and Member State regulation combines to help protect the environment (the 'Make It Work' initiative). The objective is to identify commonly used instruments and procedures across directives to see where duplication, varying definitions and terms can be reduced while maintaining the level of protection in the legislation and improving the efficiency of its application.

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The story of environmental reporting

2002

6th EAP

2002

WISE concept born (e-reporting for all water legislation)

2013

7th EAP

2007

INSPIRE adoptedWISE portal launched

2005 2008

Shared Environment Information System (SEIS)

2009

2012

Implementation Communication

1995/6

SRD questionnaires

1992

Standardised Reporting Directive(SRD)

2015

Better Regulation initiative starts

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The objectiveTo develop more modern, efficient and effective regulatory monitoring building on the past successes to support the following specific objectives:

• Better results on the ground (i.e. higher implementation and compliance rates);

• Less pressure on public and private sector contributing to reporting (administrative burden reduction);

• Better information and empowerment of citizens (i.e. transparent and public available information);

• Facilitating Better Regulation in environment policy(i.e. having the evidence base for evaluation and IAs). 5

Area 3: the content

Area 2: the

process

• Lower frequency of reporting• Better synchronisation

• Less data requested• Ensure key performance Indicators• Less text more automised data

Efficiency gains through • automisation• harmonisation• centralisation

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Three areas of work

The data flow process

1: local

Individual data(sets)

2: regional

First level of (spatial) aggregation

3: national

Second level of (spatial) aggregation

4: EU (COM/EEA)

EP / Council

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COM/EEA report

International organisations (e.g. UN)

Work Programme 2016

On 27 October 2015, the Commission announced a (see COM(2015) 610-Annex 2):

"Fitness Check to identify opportunities to simplify and alleviate reporting obligations stemming from EU environmental law with a view to develop a more modern, efficient and effective system for regulatory monitoring."

…and the following deliverables are announced (see COM(2015) 610-Annex 5):

"the Commission intends to prepare a Communication which sets out the strategy and the ambition level of the Fitness Check of monitoring and reporting obligations in environment policy and documents some early actions in this field, among other things the state of play of the Standardised Reporting Directive and related questionnaires, including a possible proposal for its repeal."

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Fitness Check milestones

2015: • Publish roadmap and launch stakeholder consultation • 19/20 November: First Stakeholder Workshop2016: • Commission Communication • Possible repeal of Standardised Reporting Directive

(91/692/EEC)• Adoption of INSPIRE REFIT report2017: • Fitness Check: Presentation of the results including possible

suggestions for further actions

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Public Internet consultation

• Main objectives: o To gather views on overall satisfaction and regarding whether

reporting requirements are in line with those principles;o To gather evidence on current shortcomings, overlaps and potential

improvements that should be examined during the process– Examples will be particularly welcome – where should we look;

o To validate the principles used for assessing environmental reporting requirements (proportionality, accessibility, relevance...);

• Period of consultation: 18 November 2015 – 10 February 2016

• To answer the questionnaire: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/consultations/reporting_en.htm

•

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Further consultation activities in 2016

• Possible stakeholder workshops in spring and autumn 2016:Presentation of public consultation and contract results Input to Fitness Check evaluation

• Commission Communication 2016 will invite other EU institutions and bodies to contribute to Fitness Check Second chance for all others to present their views and input following the

public consultation

• Outreach in relevant fora and meetings Discussion for specific areas

ENV F.1 11

Questions?

Thank you for your attention!

Contacts:Steve White (Unit ENV. F1) stephen.white@ec.europa.euJoachim D'Eugenio (Unit ENV D.4) joachim.d'eugenio@ec.europa.eu

More information:http://ec.europa.eu/environment/legal/reporting/index_en.htm