Opinion of the Commission pursuant to Article 251 (2) (c) of the EC Treaty, on the European Parliament's amendments to the Council's common position regarding the proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on national emission ceilings for certain pollutants amending the proposal of the Commission pursuant to Article 250 (2) of the EC Treaty
Date: 2001-04-25
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU environmental policy, aircraft, atmospheric pollutant, common position, maritime transport, pollution control measures, tradeable emission permit

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 25.4.2001
COM(2001) 243 final

1999/0067 (COD)

OPINION OF THE COMMISSION

pursuant to Article 251 (2) (c) of the EC Treaty,
on the European Parliament's amendments
to the Council's common position regarding the
proposal for a

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
AND OF THE COUNCIL

on national emission ceilings for certain pollutants

AMENDING THE PROPOSAL OF THE COMMISSION
pursuant to Article 250 (2) of the EC Treaty

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

Article 251, paragraph 2, letter c) of the Treaty establishing the European Community
establishes that the Commission gives an opinion on the amendments proposed by the
European Parliament in the second reading.

The Commission hereafter gives its opinion on the nine amendments adopted by the European
Parliament.

1.

BACKGROUND

to the Council and the European
Transmission of
Parliament (COM(1999)125 final) (in accordance with Article 175 (1)
of the Treaty)

the Proposal

14 July 1999

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions

Opinion of the European Parliament – first reading

Adoption of the Common Position

Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament
concerning the Common Position (SEC (2000)1936 final)

Opinion of the European Parliament – second reading

8 December 1999

14 June 2000

15 March 2000

7 November 2000

10 November 2000

14 March 2001

The second reading of the European Parliament aims to strengthens the Common Position in a
number of areas. It introduces more ambitious national emission ceilings for sulphur dioxide,
oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds and dates by which long-term
environmental objectives should be met. It also includes emissions from international
maritime shipping and aircraft beyond the landing and take-off cycle into the national
emission ceilings and requests the Commission to come forward with proposals for EC-wide
economic instruments which aim to ensure that the ceilings are met.

2.

OBJECTIVE OF THE COMMISSION PROPOSAL

The Commission's proposal for a directive on National Emission Ceilings (NEC) sets upper
limits for each Member State for the total emissions of the four pollutants responsible for
acidification, eutrophication and ozone, but leaves it largely to the Member States to decide
which measures to take in order to comply. These pollutants are transported in large quantities
from Member State to Member State. The emission ceilings must be met by 2010.

The long-term objectives of the proposal are that there should be no exceedance of critical
loads and levels for acidification and eutrophication and no exceedance of WHO guidelines
for ozone. It is not possible on present evidence to predict dates by which these objectives
could be met. The emission ceilings proposed by the Commission were therefore designed to
meet
interim objectives for acidification that have already been agreed by Council and
Parliament, plus proposed new objectives for ozone, in the least- cost way for the Community

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as a whole. Individual Member States could not in general meet the objectives within their
territory by domestic action alone.

3.

COMMISSION OPINION ON THE AMENDMENTS ADOPTED BY THE PARLIAMENT

On 14 March 2001 the European Parliament adopted 9 amendments. 1 amendment has been
accepted by the Commission in full (Amendment 2), 2 have been accepted in part or in
principle (Amendments 3 and 8). The remaining amendments cannot be accepted.

3.1 Amendment accepted by the Commission

The Commission agrees that emissions from shipping make a significant contribution to the
problems of acidification, eutrophication and ground level ozone in the Community and that
this should be tackled. Emissions from aircraft above the landing and take-off cycle are
thought not to contribute greatly, but additional work should be carried out to check this. In
general, emissions from international shipping are best tackled by action in the International
Maritime Organisation and from aircraft by action within the International Civil Aviation
Organisation. Article 9 already mentions international regulations concerning ship and aircraft
emissions. Amendment 2 brings recital 11 into line with this article.

3.2

Amendments accepted in principle by the Commission

Amendment 3 also deals with emissions from shipping. It adds a new recital noting the
importance of emissions from shipping and referring to the requirements of article 7(3) of
Directive 1999/32/EC of 26 April 1999 relating to the sulphur content of certain liquid fuels.
The Commission would prefer to follow the wording of Article 7(3) as close as possible. In
pursuance of this requirement, the Commission, the Member States and Norway last year
successfully proposed to the IMO that the North Sea should be declared a low sulphur area. In
addition, the Commission has developed an inventory of emissions from shipping in the
Mediterranean and Black Sea for use by the EC and the wider international Commission.
Before this there were inventories only for the Baltic and the North Sea. It has also completed
a first study on the potential for Community action to reduce emissions from shipping. The
Commission services are now carrying out further technical work on ship emissions to air,
including sulphur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds, with a view to
presenting a report on future strategy to Council and Parliament by the end of 2001.

Amendment 8 seeks to require the Commission to bring forward by the end of 2001 proposals
the objectives of the present proposal. The
for economic instruments designed to meet
Commission will look at the scope for using economic instruments when it reviews the
Directive in 2004 and 2008 in accordance with Article 9. The Commission can therefore
accept this amendment in principle and in part by replacing Parliament's wording with "the
possible use of economic instruments".

3.3 Amendments not accepted by the Commission

Amendments 1, 6, 7 (2nd part) and 10 directly concern national emission ceilings.
Amendment 10 would reinstate in Annex I the emission ceilings originally proposed by the
Commission for sulphur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds where
these are more ambitious than Council's Common Position. Common Position would be
retained for these pollutants in cases where it is more ambitious than the Commission's
proposal. Common Position would be retained completely for ammonia, even where it is less
ambitious than the Commission's proposal.

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The national emission ceilings originally proposed by the Commission were designed to meet
interim environmental objectives to be met in 2010. The Commission remains committed to
these objectives. Council has endorsed them strongly, but considers that there are a number of
uncertainties which prevent Member States from agreeing the ceilings calculated by the
Commission as legally binding commitments at present. The Common Position of Council
includes reviews, scheduled for 2004 and 2008, with the aim of making up the shortfall. The
Commission can accept that the combination of Council's Common Position and the Common
Position on the Large Combustion Plant are a significant first step toward meeting objectives.
The Commission therefore does not accept amendment 10.

Amendment 6 would delete the word "broadly" from the chapeau of Article 5 in the Common
Position. This states that "The national emission ceilings in Annex I shall have as their
purpose to meet broadly" the interim environmental objectives listed in the Article.
Amendment 1 deletes the word "broadly" from recital 11. Both the emission ceilings of the
Common Position, and the emission ceilings adopted by Parliament at its second reading fall
short of those which have been calculated as necessary to meet the environmental objectives
throughout the Community. They will however make a positive contribution towards meeting
them, and the term "broadly" is a good description of the expected outcome. The Commission
does not therefore accept amendments 1 and 6.

Amendment 7 (second part) deletes the requirement in Article 9 (1) for the Commission to
review the extent to which further emission reductions might be necessary to meet the interim
environmental objectives set out in Article 5 of the proposal when it reports to Parliament and
Council in 2004 and 2008. As explained above, both the emission ceilings of Council's
Common Position and of the Common Position as amended by Parliament fall short of those
needed to meet interim environmental objectives. The Commission cannot therefore accept
the amendment. (The Commission stated during debate in Plenary on 13 March that it could
in principle accept Amendment 7 part 2 subject to satisfactory wording of a new article that
would have been inserted by amendment 9. Parliament however rejected amendment 9.)

Amendment 4 would set dates for meeting the long term objectives of no exceedance of
critical loads and levels for acidification and eutrophication and no exceedance of WHO
guidelines for ozone. The Commission is committed to pursuing these long-term objectives.
However, it is impossible on present knowledge to predict when they could be met, how, and
at what cost. The Commission does not therefore accept the amendment.

Amendments 5 and 7 (first part) again deal with emissions from international maritime traffic
and aircraft above the landing and take-off cycle. As explained above, the Commission agrees
that emissions from shipping require further action and that emissions from aircraft should be
examined in more detail. The Commission cannot however accept amendments 5 and 7 (first
part) which would include such emissions within national emission ceilings. Firstly, it is not
clear how emissions from ships and aircraft travelling between non-Member States could be
allocated to Member States. Secondly, for legal reasons these emissions cannot be controlled
by Member States. They must be tackled by international action.

3.4

Re-examined proposal

Having regard to Article 250, paragraph 2 of the EC Treat, the Commission modifies its
proposal as indicated above.

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