Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the 'Communication from the Commission on Environment and employment: building a sustainable Europe'
Date: 1998-11-19
Institutions: European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: European Union, employment policy, environmental policy, environmental protection

22.2.1999

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the ‘Communication from the Commission on
Environment and employment: building a sustainable Europe’

(1999/C 51/07)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS,

having regard to the Communication from the Commission on Environment and employment:
building a sustainable Europe (COM(97) 592 final);

having regard to the Commission decision of 26 November 1997 to consult it on this subject,
pursuant to Article 198c, paragraph 1, of the Treaty establishing the European Community;

having regard to the COR Bureau’s decision of 12 March 1998 to refer the preparation of this
opinion to Commission 4 for Spatial Planning, Urban Issues Energy, and Environment;

having regard to the draft opinion (CdR 75/98 rev. 2) adopted by Commission 4 on 22 April
1998 (rapporteur: Mr José Ramo´n Garcı´a Can˜al, subsequently replaced by Mr Leonardo
Verdı´n),

adopted the following opinion by a majority at its 26th plenary session of 18 and 19 November
1998 (meeting of 19 November).

I. INTRODUCTION

The resources problem

1.
The Committee of the Regions agrees that unem-
ployment is currently one of the main challenges facing
European economies, giving rise to underuse of available
human resources.

The COR takes the view that after several decades
2.
of continued growth, problems of environmental pol-
lution and depletion of resources are such that an
overhaul of the economic growth model is now necess-
ary. Natural resources are currently being overused
to the extent that future economic growth may be
jeopardized. This excessive exploitation of nature is
closely related to production and consumption patterns
in industrialized countries. Since European countries
belong to this group, they are jointly responsible for
the situation. The sectors contributing most to the
environmental deterioration are industry, energy, indus-
trial-type agriculture and transport, but also patterns of
household consumption.

4.
The COR is pleased that the new Treaty places
special emphasis on the environmental and employment
problems faced by the EU.

In keeping with the agreement reached in Amster-
5.
dam on employment issues, the Commission Communi-
cation on Proposals for guidelines for Member States’
employment policies in 1998 (1 October 1997) set out
several lines of action, providing a framework for the
discussion in the Extraordinary European Employment
Council held on 20 and 21 November 1997 in Luxem-
bourg. The COR agrees that employment policy in the
Member States should follow these lines of action, thus
guaranteeing that the current economic recovery is
accompanied in the long term by a high level of
employment and a stable macro-economic environment.

6.
The COR welcomes the fact that the new Amster-
dam Treaty defines the achievement of sustainable
development as one of the explicit objectives of the
Union. It is also pleased that Community policy in this
area is seeking to attain a high level of protection,
bearing in mind the differences between various regions
and municipalities, and based on the principles of
caution and preventive action, on the principle of
correcting damage to the environment, preferably at
source, and lastly on the ‘polluter-pays’ principle.

The political mandate

II. LINKS

BETWEEN ENVIRONMENT AND

EMPLOYMENT

3.
The Communication from the European Com-
mission on Environment and employment discussed in
this opinion is based on the conclusions of the European
Council in Amsterdam (June 1997), incorporated into
the recently signed Treaty of Amsterdam.

Economic growth and sustainable development

The COR believes that the solution to the resources
7.
problem highlighted in the introduction to this opinion

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lies in the establishment of a new model for growth that
is compatible with protection of the environment and is
capable of generating employment. This is in line with
the provisions of the European Commission’s White
Paper on Growth, competitiveness, employment, which
states that ‘a major element of the new development
model will be to decouple future economic prosperity
from environmental pollution’. The aim would be to
attain sustainable economic development that safegu-
ards the environment and does not endanger future
supplies of natural resources.

8.
The development of new environmentally-friendly
processes and products requires the introduction and
use of cleaner technologies that are less intensive in their
use of natural resources. This requires new investments
to promote the creation of new jobs. The two objectives
could therefore be met at the same time.

Towards a job-intensive and sustainable Europe

9.
The COR is of the view that in order to build a
sustainable Europe, the following objectives must be
combined: a competitive economy, a reduction in
pollution, more efficient use of energy and raw materials,
and higher employment. Implementation of measures
designed to achieve these objectives requires prior
understanding of the relationship between the environ-
ment and employment.

10.
This relationship was examined in great detail at
the Conference on the Environment and Employment
organized by the Commission and the European Parlia-
ment in May 1997. The conclusion was that the adoption
of environmental measures can be both good and bad
for employment.

11.
The COR considers that the range of activities
producing environmental goods and services, usually
referred to as the environmental industry or eco-industry,
is good for employment. There are also activities in the
sector of clean technologies, renewable energy sources,
waste recycling, protection of nature and landscapes,
and renewal of dilapidated urban areas. These sectors
generate direct employment and also have a knock-on
effect on other sectors of the economy, as the environ-
mental companies purchase intermediary goods and
services, and the employees of the sector spend more on
consumer goods.

12.
The COR is aware that the implementation of
environmental legislation may have a negative impact
on employment in the regulated sectors, resulting in
competitive disadvantages, plant closures and industrial
relocation.

13.
The COR would point out that a negative impact
on competitiveness depends fundamentally on the type
of sector or company concerned. The cost of complying
with environmental legislation is greater in polluting
sectors and in those reliant on natural resources. It is
also higher in sectors and companies that already have
a competitive weakness. In such cases, problems of
competitiveness cannot be ascribed exclusively to com-
pliance with environmental requirements.

14.
In the COR’s view, it is debatable whether the
adverse effects on employment resulting from plant
closures or cuts in industrial production can be attributed
solely to environmental policy, since such decisions are
usually taken in response to an accumulation of negative
factors.

15. On the basis of studies carried out on industrial
relocation decisions, the COR highlights that environ-
mental requirements are not a crucial consideration in
the decision to relocate, except in very specific cases of
highly polluting industries, which are usually in decline.

16. Given the need to design environmental policies
to enhance their positive impact and reduce their
negative impact, the COR agrees with the three aspects
highlighted by the European Commission Communi-
cation on Environment and growth in relation to the
preparation of such environmental policies: the use of
economic instruments, investment designed to improve
the environment by using new and less polluting tech-
nologies that would come to replace end-of-pipe sol-
utions, and boosting the competitiveness of
the
companies concerned.

Managing the transition

17.
The COR considers that special efforts should be
made to seek a strategy that encourages the transition
towards a model of sustainable development, minimizing
possible adverse effects on the international competi-
tiveness of certain sectors, regions and municipalities
that may be more vulnerable to the development of a
more strict environmental policy. Specifically, it pro-
poses gradual implementation of the policy, as well as a
significant degree of international coordination and
targeting of environmental spending at regional and
sectoral level.

III. POLICIES IN SUPPORT OF THE ENVIRON-
MENT AND EMPLOYMENT

Urgent tasks

The COR shares the Commission’s view that
18.
sustainable development requires combining environ-

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mental considerations with the above mentioned support
policies in those sectors most responsible for environ-
mental pollution in the EU. Such a strategy will secure
benefits not only for the environment, but also for
job-creation as part of a process of structural change
and overall improvement of European competitiveness.
The COR would emphasize that investment in environ-
mental protection cannot be motivated purely by
employment considerations; it should be made primarily
for the sake of environmental protection. It is also
necessary to promote a change in European consumer
behaviour, something which will, in turn, influence the
changes that take place in the following sectors.

Manufacturing industry

19.
The COR insists that the implementation of
stricter legislation, the introduction of cleaner and
more efficient technologies, the development of more
environment-friendly products and the consolidation of
quality control policies in companies, provide significant
growth potential for many industrial sectors by improv-
ing competitiveness and broadening markets. Moreover,
all of these factors will serve to consolidate sectors
offering environmental goods and services.

20.
The COR agrees with the Commission that the
expected changes in the organization of work and
companies and, in particular, the changes resulting from
more subcontracting, will have a considerable impact
on job-creation in SMEs.

and technological development in the car industry. All
of these factors will provide more sustainable transport
and involve initiatives that contribute to job-creation.

Energy production

23.
The COR considers that it is necessary to seek an
energy model that is less polluting, more efficient in its
use of resources, and that involves developing activities
designed to conserve energy and use renewable sources.
It is also pleased at the initiatives already taken in
Member States that are particularly active in this field
(such as Denmark and Germany), and which offer
considerable job opportunities.

Agricultural practices

Since the 1992 reform, the CAP has included
24.
measures designed to incorporate environmental con-
siderations into the agricultural sector. This objective is
re-stated in Agenda 2000 when it recognizes the need to
strike a better balance between the supply of high-quality
agricultural products and the protection of nature and
its resources (water and land).

25.
The COR agrees that the following four areas
highlighted by the European Commission Communi-
cation on Environment and growth are particularly
important for job-creation: the conservation and protec-
tion of landscapes, high value nature areas and habitats;
sustainable forestry; development and use of new non-
food crops and the development of organic farming.

Transport

Consumption patterns and households

21.
The COR considers that the sector’s main prob-
lems stem from intensive use of road transport, with its
clearly adverse effects on the environment, and from
the current inefficiency of European rail and inland
waterways networks. On this point, the Committee
would refer to the principles for a progressive and
sustainable transport policy as laid down in its resolution
of 14 May 1998 on a European Charter of regional and
local authorities for a progressive and sustainable
transport policy (1). Every effort should be made to
achieve the goals set out therein.

Consequently, the COR supports the measures
22.
being implemented in the EU in this area: the develop-
ment of the rail, river and maritime transport systems,
the promotion of intermodal systems, the use of urban
and inter-urban public transport, the use of new and
less-polluting transport systems, the introduction of
intelligent transport support systems, and innovation

(1) OJ C 251, 10.8.1998, p. 7.

26.
Consumer behaviour is shifting towards more
environment-friendly products. This change has direct
repercussions on the above-mentioned sectors as com-
panies must adjust production to meet the changing
demand.

27.
The COR agrees with the Commission that
measures designed to alert and inform consumers and
producers as to the need to use ‘green’ goods and
services and adopt environment-friendly behaviour will
strengthen the effect of support measures implemented
in the different sectors.

Territorial aspects

28.
Since environmental damage has immediate
repercussions on specific geographical locations, the
COR wishes to place special emphasis on the spatial
dimension of this problem. Although environmental
damage is not uniform in all European regions and
municipalities, there are two factors that are common

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to all: the need to renew urban areas and to preserve the
natural environment and the population level in rural
areas. These two factors could in turn provide consider-
able job opportunities.

Efforts to correct the adverse effects of environmental
taxes should also take account of national, regional and
local conditions such as, for example, the climate, soil
and hydrological conditions, the flora and fauna, the
geology, etc., particularly where the natural geographic
conditions have specific features that differ from other
EU regions.

Urban development

29. Most urban areas in Europe are faced with the
need to undo the damage caused by an economic growth
model that failed to take account of environmental
impact. The renewal of urban centres and buildings, the
development and improvement of infrastructures, the
social crisis in some housing developments and possibly
their necessary regeneration, the necessary renovation
of old industrial areas, use and conservation of historical
heritage, and the urban population’s growing interest in
green areas, have prompted many cities to review their
urban policy.

30.
The COR agrees with the Commission on the
important job-creation potential of urban renewal poli-
cies.

Efficient use of land

31.
The continuing ‘consumption’ of land, the finite
land resources available and the damage done to soil all
require that land be used more efficiently in future
(land recycling, redevelopment and regeneration). These
measures usually have a high employment potential.

Rural development

32.
Environmental damage to many rural areas in
Europe stems from the rural exodus that prompted the
desertification of land that was previously in agricultural
production and the consequent disappearance of tra-
ditional maintenance techniques. The damage also stems
from the increasingly intensive agricultural practices
implemented in the last twenty years, which have caused
a loss in bio-diversity, soil erosion, and nitrate and
pesticide pollution of water. There are also natural
habitats whose ecological balance has been endangered
as a result of intensive tourism, as is the case in some
coastal and upland areas.

33.
The COR agrees with the proposals put forward
by the Commission in Agenda 2000 insofar as they will
provide employment for farmers and in rural areas by
encouraging labour-intensive activities like organic

farming, forestry, environmental conservation and the
development of new services such as rural tourism.

Support policies

The European Commission Communication on
34.
Environment and growth, in step with the guidelines of
the fifth European Community programme of policy
and action in relation to the environment and sustainable
development, proposes the implementation of measures
guaranteeing effective enforcement of environmental
legislation. It places emphasis on the development of
fiscal policy designed to jointly achieve environmental
and employment objectives. It also stresses the need to
incorporate environmental considerations into other
policies (research and technological development policy,
public procurement, trade policy, and employment and
training policy).

Implementation of the Community acquis regarding the
environment

35.
The Commission Communication on Im-
plementing Community environmental law (1) specifies
how to improve and strengthen implementation of
environmental legislation in the EU Member States. The
COR agrees with the Commission that it is necessary to
take a step further and introduce mechanisms that
guarantee not only legal compliance, but also effective
practical
implementation. Given the greater lack of
resources faced by the less developed countries, regions
and municipalities of the Union, the COR believes that
a considerable proportion of Community funds should
be channelled into promoting the investment necessary
for effective implementation.

Making taxation more employment- and environment-
friendly

36.
The COR considers that in recent years there has
been an increase in fiscal pressure on labour input in the
EU, thus burdening employment with prohibitively high
costs. The COR therefore agrees with the communi-
cation on the need to correct this situation by relieving
the fiscal pressure on labour while at the same time
increasing other taxes — environmental and energy
taxes among others — so that the effect on overall tax
receipts will be zero.

Technology assessment and development

37.
Together with the European Commission, the
COR acknowledges that the development of an environ-
mental R&D policy does not only serve to improve and
protect the environment, but also gives a competitive
advantage to the environmental sector in those countries
involved in the research effort, which in turn will lead
to increased growth and job-creation.

(1) COM(96) 500 final.

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38.
The COR is pleased that the Commission Com-
munication on Inventing tomorrow (1) highlights sus-
tainable development and employment among the other
key issues to be considered by the EU’s Fifth Framework
Programme for Research and Technological Develop-
ment. This demonstrates the clear importance attached
to these areas in European research and technological
development policy.

39.
The COR strongly supports the Commission
idea of developing a flexible information system to
disseminate more innovative and job-creating environ-
mental technologies. Such a system would enable public
and private companies and institutions to have an
up-to-date knowledge of such technologies.

Dissemination of information

40.
The communication highlights that many initiat-
ives have already been introduced to distribute infor-
mation to investors and consumers on more ‘environ-
ment-friendly’ production methods, products and ser-
vices in the form of manuals, databases, conferences,
‘eco-labels’, etc.

The COR is pleased that the Commission never-
41.
theless highlights the need to maintain and develop these
information activities even further in the future. It thus
recommends a greater exchange of information between
the European Environment Agency and local and
regional authorities.

Domestic and external markets

that

The Committee stresses

42.
the European
internal market gives European companies an historic
opportunity to improve their services, capitalize on
economies of scale, and, in general, obtain a competitive
advantage on world markets. The EU environmental
sector could capitalize on this advantage, which would
be further enhanced by the development of targeted
policies designed to increase the use of environmental
processes, goods and services. An effective means of
achieving this would be to incorporate environmental
considerations into public procurement. The COR
encourages the Commission in its plan to draw up a
communication on this subject in the future.

43.
The COR also recognizes that given the economic
significance of public procurement, its liberalization
could mean substantial savings for government, releasing
resources that could be used to boost public demand for
environmental projects, goods and services.

any growing demand for environmental activities and
technologies.

Financial support

45.
The COR notes with satisfaction that both
the Commission and the European Parliament have
publicized the need to increase the environmental
component of Community spending.

46.
The COR agrees that the Structural and Cohesion
Funds should allocate a proportion of their resources to
environment-related projects and that the Structural
Funds should specify an environmental impact assess-
ment, in accordance with the provisions of Directives
85/337/EEC, 96/61/EC and 97/11/EC (2) in recipient
regions and municipalities as a pre-requisite for assist-
ance. It is also important to pursue the already established
strategy of supporting projects that
facilitate the
implementation of environmental directives in recipient
Member States.

The COR welcomes the incorporation into the
47.
CAP of
specifically environment-oriented flanking
measures seeking to support the sustained development
of rural areas and meeting a growing demand for
environmental services.

The COR is very pleased to see that in Agenda
48.
2000, the Commission has specified the need to incorpor-
ate environmental objectives into the proposals for
regulations on the new Structural and Cohesion Funds
and into the future development of the CAP, particularly
in terms of rural policy.

49.
The COR supports the proposal in the communi-
cation to use the charges paid by the users of environmen-
tal services as an alternative source of funding. This
would relieve pressure on national and regional budgets
for this type of spending. Similarly, the penalties and
fines imposed for infringing environmental legislation
could also be used to benefit the area where the
infringement occurred.

IV. THE WAY FORWARD — KEY ACTIONS

Reviewing labour market policies

The COR would make the following comments

50.
on the five key actions set out by the communication.

44.
The COR believes that labour market policies
(education and training) must be designed to meet

(1) COM(96) 332 final.

(2) OJ L 175, 5.7.1985, p. 40; OJ L 257, 10.10.1996, p. 26; OJ

L 73, 14.3.1997, p. 5.

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1st key action (Environmental and social benchmarking)

51.
For this action, the COR urges the Commission
to highlight the need to improve environmental statistics
in the EU and in the Member States; to incorporate
ecological considerations into sectoral statistics —
industry, energy, agriculture and transport; to align the
data on environment-related spending in the Member
States; and to establish the computer and telematic
infrastructure needed to produce and disseminate infor-
mation on the environment, in particular regarding
experience with the best available technologies and
benchmarking.

52.
The COR wishes to stress the need to circulate
information to local and regional authorities. To do so,
it calls on the Commission to support the development
of projects in this area.

The COR also considers that special attention
53.
should be paid to developing physical benchmarks
and extending the concepts of national accounting,
compiling satellite environment accounts.

2nd key action (Technological assessment and develop-
ment)

54.
For measures designed to promote the develop-
ment and application of cleaner and more efficient
technologies, the COR suggests that the Commission
stress two further aspects. Firstly, measures to support
innovation and technological development in companies
should be strengthened by providing financial and tax
incentives. Secondly, the dissemination and transfer of
these technologies to the less developed regions and
municipalities of the EU should be promoted. This
would avoid further widening the gap between these
areas and the more dynamic ones in which research
activities have traditionally been concentrated.

3rd key action (Building upon Agenda 2000)

55.
The COR believes that the Commission should
consider the fact that, although environmental measures
may have a positive net impact on employment in the
EU as a whole, benefits and costs may well be unequally
distributed between the different regions and munici-
palities.

The positive effects will be concentrated on those
56.
countries/regions which have a longer tradition of
environmental protection and so have a head start.

The negative impact on employment will have
57.
the greatest impact on highly polluting, and usually

basic, industries in traditional and declining sectors.
Countries/regions specializing in these activities will be
hardest hit by environmental protection measures. If, in
addition, the environmental industry has not developed
there, these countries/regions will become net importers,
which will aggravate the employment problem. Environ-
mental legislation may not only have a negative impact
on existing employment, but may also fail to compensate
by creating new employment, as jobs would be created
outside the country/region concerned.

To ensure that this does not occur, the COR
58.
recommends combining the implementation of stricter
legislation with increased Community financial support
through the Structural and Cohesion Funds, bearing in
mind the current budget restrictions in the Member
States. With the future EU enlargement towards Central
and Eastern Europe, this support may turn out to be
insufficient if the Community budget remains at a
similar percentage of GDP.

4th key action (Taxation and pricing)

59.
The COR wishes to highlight this key action as
one of the most important ways of achieving the twin
objectives of creating employment and preserving the
environment. In this respect, the COR would argue that
the Commission should bear in mind that to be effective,
such a tax should be implemented progressively and
not across-the-board, taxing companies in the highest
polluting countries/regions more heavily.

60.
The COR also suggests that the Commission, in
cooperation with the Member States, further develop
market instruments, which could be used on a European
level for environmental purposes. The solutions con-
sidered most efficient and suitable should then be
introduced.

61.
The COR urges the Commission to review the
environmental aspect of legislation governing trade
between third countries in order to bring the quality,
health standards and food safety of raw materials,
natural and processed products into line with those
obtained, produced or processed in the EU.

5th key action (Environmental training and education)

62.
The COR considers that although training in
the environment and natural resources is becoming
increasingly important in the EU as a whole, it could be
of particular interest to the older industrialized regions.
Not only do these regions suffer from serious environ-

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mental damage that needs to be set right, but they also
have an industrial base that is generally a heavy polluter,
in crisis and experiencing drastic job losses. Renewal
of the environment, technological change in existing
industries, particularly in moving towards cleaner tech-
nologies, and the need to diversify their productive
structure, suggest that the development of environmental
sectors provides a solid alternative for the future. If this
is the case, the environmental qualifications of employees
will be a crucial factor. It would be useful to promote
beginners’ and particularly intermediate and higher level
courses in this area, as well as continuous training and
re-training for workers both in employment and those
who are out of work.

V. FINAL COMMENTS

sector. The development of tourism is affected by
environmental measures adopted in other sectors of
the economy. Furthermore, these measures have a
geographical impact both on rural and urban areas.
At the same time, however, it is important that
the tourism sector considers specific environmental
measures
that guarantee genuinely sustainable
tourism.

— Since SMEs have such a large employment potential
and find it most difficult to introduce clean tech-
nologies, emphasis should be placed on the need to
institute support and assistance programmes to
overcome any technical and financial obstacles they
may encounter.
these pro-
grammes should be facilitated at EU level.

Implementation of

The COR stresses the need to consider the
63.
following factors in addition to the measures proposed
by the Commission:

— Given the importance of tourism in many regional
economies, special mention should be made of this

— Finally, in order to modify consumer behaviour in
line with the environmental objectives pursued, the
cost of taking account of environmental consider-
ations should be included in the market price at
which goods are sold.

Brussels, 19 November 1998.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Manfred DAMMEYER