Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Small, clean and competitive - A programme to help small and medium-sized enterprises comply with environmental legislation {SEC(2007}906 {SEC(2007) }907 {SEC(2007)908}
Date: 2007-10-08
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU programme, aid to undertakings, application of EU law, environmental law, prevention of pollution, small and medium-sized enterprises

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 8.10.2007 
COM(2007) 379 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

Small, clean and competitive 

A programme to help small and medium-sized enterprises comply with environmental 
legislation 

{SEC(2007}906 
{SEC(2007) }907 
{SEC(2007)908} 

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

5.1. 

5.2. 

5.3. 

5.4. 

5.5. 

6. 

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 3 

SMEs and environmental policy .................................................................................. 3 

The challenge of more eco-efficient SMEs.................................................................. 4 

The policy context........................................................................................................ 5 

The Action Plan............................................................................................................ 6 

Better Regulation in design and implementation of policies, to facilitate and 
minimise the administrative burden of compliance ..................................................... 6 

More accessible tailor-made environmental management schemes for SMEs............ 7 

Focused financial assistance and a multiannual financial programme for sustainable 
production in SMEs...................................................................................................... 8 

Building local environmental expertise for SMEs ..................................................... 10 

Better communication and more targeted information .............................................. 11 

Conclusion and way forward ..................................................................................... 11 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The  ambitious  targets  set  by  the  European  Council1  in  terms  of  greenhouse  gas  reduction, 
renewable energy and energy efficiency to be  achieved by 2020 require the emergence of a 
new business paradigm which is able to make environmental concerns an integral part of the 
production processes and products.  

Small  and  medium-sized  enterprises  -  SMEs2  -  make  up  a  large  part  of  Europe’s  economy, 
representing some 99% of all enterprises and 57% of economic value added3. As such, they 
also  have  a  primary  role  to  play  in  shifting  the  European  economy  to  more  sustainable 
production and consumption patterns.  

Representing such a large percentage of economic activities SMEs have a significant impact 
on  the  environment.  The  problem  is  not  so  much  individual  firms,  although  in  some  cases 
there  can  be  serious  individual  impacts  on  local  environments  and  communities,  but  their 
combined total impact across sectors.  

There  are  clear  signals  that  wide  industrial  sectors  are  moving  towards  cleaner  production 
processes, in order to respond, amongst other things, to climate change imperatives - we need 
to ensure that the SMEs are not left behind in this regard. SMEs face different and sometimes 
greater  challenges  than  larger  companies,  and  have  to  deal  with  specific  problems  when 
tackling environmental impacts and complying with environmental legislation.  

2. 

SMES AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY 

SMEs are often not fully aware of the environmental impacts of their activities. Most of them 
(between 75% and 90% according to some surveys4) think that their activities do not have an 
impact  on  the  environment.  Accordingly,  most  of  them  have  not  introduced  any  practical 
measures  to  reduce  their  environmental  impacts,  and  only  6%  have  an  Environmental 
Management  System  (EMS)  in  place.  Evidence  shows  that  even  though  environmental 
management  systems  and  tools  may  be  rarer  among  SMEs  than  among  larger  firms  (partly 
due  to  costs  of  external  verification)  when  they  are  introduced  they  typically  make  a 
significant difference.5 Sometimes SMEs are part of the supply chain of larger companies. In 
these  cases,  the  responsibility  of  the  latter  in  helping  SMEs  to  comply  with  environmental 
legislation is crucial. 

Although their combined environmental impacts are substantial SMEs are often not bound to 
more  comprehensive  and  effective  environmental  schemes  or  legislation  (such  as  the  IPPC 
Directive6 or the Emission Trading Scheme7). This is due to the fact that they often fall below 

1 
2 

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4 
5 

6 
7 

See Presidency Conclusions of the Brussels European Council 8/9 March 2007. 
SMEs  are  enterprises  which  employ  fewer  than  250  persons  and  which  have  an  annual  turnover  not 
exceeding  €50  million,  and/or  an  annual  balance  sheet 
total  not  exceeding  €43  million. 
Recommendation on the SME definition (2003/361/EC) of 6.5.2003.  
The  Commission  Communication  ‘Modern  SME  Policy  for  Growth  and  Employment’  (COM 
(2005)551). 
See e.g. SME-nvironment 2005 in http://www.netregs.gov.uk  
See A Comparative Analysis of the Environmental Management, Performance and Innovation of SMEs 
and Larger Firms based on the OECD database, Julien Labonne, 07/2006 
Council Directive 96/61/EC of 24.09.1996 
Directive 2003/87/EC of the EP and Council of 13.10.2003 

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the thresholds that trigger the application of instruments that concentrate on major individual 
sources  of  pollution.  Where  environmental  legislation  is  applicable  to  SMEs,  they  tend  to 
presume that they are complying and as a result full compliance is often the result of external 
action after an inspection rather than an on-going process of checking that legal requirements 
are  being  met.8  At  the  same  time,  SMEs  often  do  not  have  the  necessary  legal  and 
environmental expertise to cope with environmental legislation.  

This situation is undesirable for three main reasons.  

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

Considering the recent policy developments in the field of environmental and energy 
policies, SMEs can miss the chance to reap the economic benefits of the opportunities 
presented by better environmental management (e.g. energy and resource efficiency or 
improved process and product management) and eco-innovation. 

If SMEs are unaware of the environmental impacts of their own activities, and of the 
environmental  legislation  that  applies  to  them,  their  activities  could  present  an 
important threat to the environment and risk undermining Community environmental 
protection measures.  

The environmental impacts of SMEs – associated with a low awareness and low legal 
compliance  –  could  have  the  effect  of  increasing  health  and  safety  risks  to  workers 
(exposure to chemicals, air pollution, etc.).  

3. 

THE CHALLENGE OF MORE ECO-EFFICIENT SMES 

Research  results  and  stakeholder  consultations  both  show  a  strong  consensus  on  the  main 
barriers  facing  SMEs  as  regards  compliance  with  environmental  legislation  and  making 
environmental improvements in general. These barriers are: 

•  lack of awareness and knowledge of environmental problems, impacts and risks;  

•  lack  of  awareness  of  potential  benefits  of  environmental  management  and  life-

cycle thinking; 

•  insufficient  access 

to  and 

local  availability  of  adequate  environmental 

information, tools and training;  

•  limited financial and human resources/expertise for dealing with compliance; 

•  relatively short-term planning at company level; 

There are two further elements related to environmental policy which act as an obstacle for 
the integration of environmental concerns into SMEs' core activities:  

•  environmental behaviour is usually governed by regulation or public pressure; 

8 

R. Fairman & C. Yapp, Making an impact on SME compliance behaviour: An evaluation of the effect of 
interventions upon compliance with health and safety legislation in SMEs, Kings College London for 
the Health and Safety Executive 2005, Research Report 366. 

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•  limited market incentives/recognition for environmentally friendly behaviour. 

The  success  of  European  SME  policy  depends  predominantly  on  actions  in  the  Member 
States, since they retain the main competence for enterprise policy and environment policy at 
company level. The role of the European Commission, in line with its Modern SME policy, is 
to help SMEs adopt sustainable production and business models. Ensuring that the objectives 
of Community environmental legislation are not undermined by low levels of compliance is 
an  important  part  of  this  process.  The  Commission  does  this  by  building  on  successful 
national  or  regional  experiences,  and  facilitating  and  supporting  the  development  of 
compliance assistance initiative throughout the Union.  

Hence  with  this  Programme  the  European  Commission  intends  to  pursue  the  following 
objectives: 

•  increase compliance with environmental legislation by SMEs thereby: 

–  reducing the environmental impacts and improve the environmental performance 

of SMEs, and  

–  ensuring an harmonised implementation of environmental legislation and a level 

playing field for SMEs in the Internal Market. 

•  increase  the  eco-efficiency  (energy,  resources)  of  SMEs  by  using  proper 

environmental management systems and other tools; 

•  increase  the  cost-effectiveness  of  environmental  policy,  reducing  administrative 

costs for SMEs and thus freeing resources to increase compliance; 

•  increase the eco-innovation of SMEs and their competitiveness. 

4. 

THE POLICY CONTEXT 

This programme was foreseen by the Sixth Community Environment Action Programme that 
proposed  the  establishment  of  a  "compliance  assistance  programme,  with  specific  help  for 
small and medium enterprises”9. Such a compliance programme was considered as one of the 
strategic  approaches  to  achieve  the  objectives  of  the  Action  Programme  and  implement  the 
principle  that  environmental  action  should  be  related  to  the  nature  and  magnitude  of 
environmental problem rather than the size of the enterprise. 

This  Communication  also  contributes  towards  the  Lisbon  objectives.  The  renewed  Lisbon 
Strategy states: “Lasting success for the Union depends on addressing a range of resource and 
environmental challenges which if left unchecked will act as a brake on future growth. This 
goes to the heart of sustainable development. Europe must rise to this challenge and take the 
lead in shifting towards more sustainable patterns of production and consumption”.10 It also 
reflects the Commission's commitment to Better Regulation, whose objectives are to simplify 
and improve the regulatory environment, increase understanding of requirements and reduce 

9 
10 

Art.3.5 of the Decision No 1600/2002/EC of the EP and Council of 22.07.2002 
COM (2005) 24 

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unnecessary administrative burdens. It is also consistent with the Commission Modern SME 
Policy objectives. 

5. 

THE ACTION PLAN 

Enforcement  activities  are  necessary  but  not  sufficient  to  ensure  environmental  compliance, 
also because they rarely induce a more permanent behavioural change in the inspected SMEs. 
Evidence from literature and case studies shows that to achieve results a mix of the following 
should  be  employed:  well  designed  rules;  accessible  environmental  tools;  education  and 
awareness raising; on-the-spot inspections combined with identification of existing problems; 
targeted information; and exchange of good practices.  

A  series  of  actions  are  therefore  proposed  around  the  following  themes,  starting  from  more 
structural initiatives and moving to ad-hoc actions11:  

(1) 

Better Regulation in design and implementation of policies, to facilitate and 
minimise  the  administrative  burden  of  compliance  for  SMEs  and  free  their 
resources for improving compliance; 

(2)  More  accessible  tailor-made  environmental  management  schemes,  to 
integrate environmental concerns into the core business activities of SMEs in 
a coherent and cost-effective way; 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

Focused  financial  assistance  and  a  multi-annual  financial  programme,  to 
promote  and  support  initiatives  by  public  authorities  or  business  support 
networks aiming at sustainable production in SMEs; 

Building  local  environmental  expertise  for  SMEs,  to  overcome  the  lack  of 
know-how at company level; 

Improved  communication  and  more  targeted  information,  to  address 
specific information gaps. 

5.1. 

Better  Regulation  in  design  and  implementation  of  policies,  to  facilitate  and 
minimise the administrative burden of compliance  

Changes to the design and operation of legislation can, in some cases, help SMEs meet their 
obligations  more  easily,  by  making  requirements  clearer  and  using  simpler  ways  to  achieve 
the  same  environmental  objectives.  Member  States  and  the  EU  should  design  legislation  in 
such  a  way  that  the  administrative  burden  of  compliance  is  minimised  and  SMEs  can  free 
their  resources  for  improving  compliance  and  environmental  performance.  The  Better 

11 

In support of these actions the Commission presents in the Annex to this Communication a selection of 
good  practices  in  compliance  assistance  from  15  EU  Member  States  or  OECD  countries.  The  case 
studies  include  the  assessment  of  both  effectiveness  and  transferability  elsewhere  of  the  initiatives, 
providing a wide range of concrete examples for public authorities and business support organisations. 

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Regulation initiative undertaken by the Commission in collaboration with Member States will 
be of particular help to SMEs with compliance12. 

•  Cutting  administrative  costs  at  EU,  national  and  regional  level.  The  Commission  is 
examining  all  its  legislation  to  identify  where  it  can  cut  unnecessary  costs  in  terms  of 
requiring  information  from  SMEs.  Member  States  should  do  their  part  in  this  exercise. 
Costs can often be cut at national level by not duplicating information requests, using IT 
solutions and sampling techniques, streamlining permit procedures or simplifying the way 
information  has  to  be  presented.  The  use  of  one-stop-shops  for  permitting  and  other 
regulatory procedures should also be explored. 

•  Identification  and  dissemination  of  good/best  practices  in  the  EU.  A  BEST  Expert 
Group report describes some 76 examples of concrete actions taken across 24 countries13. 
The  existing  network  and  report  provide  an  established  mechanism  to  support  actions  to 
implement environmental legislation in the most cost-effective way.  

•  Working with implementation authorities. To improve implementation of and increase 
compliance  with  environmental  legislation,  the  Commission  intends  to  continue  its 
cooperation with the IMPEL network.14 In particular, the IMPEL network will contribute 
to  the  revision  of  the  Recommendation  on  Minimum  Criteria  for  Environmental 
Inspections,15 including its practical experiences with the needs and constraints of SMEs.  

•  Involvement  of  SME  stakeholders  in  policy-making  and  implementation.  In  the 
updated  internal  guidelines  for  impact  assessments  of  EU  policies  and  legislation,  the 
Commission has strengthened the SME dimension. The Commission will also reinforce the 
consultation  of  SME  stakeholders  in  both  policy-making  and  policy  implementation,  to 
ensure that the specific requirements of SMEs are appropriately reflected, and that specific 
measures  are  designed,  whenever  necessary,  to  ease  the  implementation  of  new 
environmental rules16. 

5.2.  More accessible tailor-made environmental management schemes for SMEs 

Implementation of an Environmental Management System (EMS) and explicit designation of 
responsibility  for  environmental  matters  have  a  much  more  positive  influence  on  the 
environmental  engagement  of  the  company  than  a  single  inspection  or  compliance  check. 
Beside EMAS (the European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme), several other EMS have 
been  developed  in  recent  years  to  respond  to  sector-specific  characteristics  and  the  level  of 
complexity of the business, or to focus on single environmental aspects. These initiatives offer 
a  useful  variety  of  environmental  management  schemes  for  SMEs  to  implement  on  a 
voluntary basis. Public authorities’ acceptance of a certified EMS as a reliable alternative to 

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13 

14 

15 
16 

See http://ec.europa.eu/governance/better_regulation  
2006 BEST Expert Group report “Reducing Burdens on Industry: Simplifying the Implementation of 
Environmental Regulation”. 
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/environment/index_home/best_project/intro.htm 
Network 
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/impel 
European Parliament and Council Recommendation 2001/331/EC. 
A  good  example  is  REACH,  the  new  chemical  regulation  (Regulation  (EC)  No  1907/2006  of  the  EP 
and  Council  of  18.12.2006),  where  a  set  of  practical  recommendations  for  Member  States  are  being 
prepared on how to set up special REACH helpdesks for SMEs. 

of  Environmental  Law 

and  Enforcement 

Implementation 

(IMPEL); 

for 

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checks  or  inspections  will  require  less  frequent  controls  or  reports.  This  will  reduce 
administrative  burdens  and  certainly  encourage  SMEs  to  introduce  an  EMS.  Because  of  its 
strict  requirements  and  transparency,  EMAS  provides  real  guarantees  to  public  authorities. 
EMAS  is  now  under  revision  in  order  to  make  it  more  robust  and  reliable  in  terms  of 
environmental performance and legal compliance. 

Even though the EMAS scheme is designed for use by organisations of all kinds and sizes, the 
following  specific  measures  will  be  taken  to  facilitate  the  implementation  of  the  scheme  in 
SMEs in the short and longer term.  

•  The  Commission  will  promote  and  support  public-private  partnerships  (consortia  or 
coordinating  bodies)  and  other  initiatives,  to  encourage  use  of  EMAS  in  industrial 
clusters  or  districts  of  SMEs,  using  specific  cluster  or  supply  chain  approaches.  These 
approaches  reduce  consultancy  and  audit/verification  costs  for  participating  SMEs,  and 
facilitate  additional  knowledge-sharing  and  experience  exchange  amongst  participants, 
encouraging a coherent environmental policy in the cluster.17 

•  Existing  tools  for  the  implementation  of  EMAS  in  SMEs,  such  as  EMAS-Easy,  will  be 
further developed and applied on a larger scale with projects in all EU Member States. A 
pilot phase of EMAS-Easy has  already been run in  new Member States and showed that 
full EMAS registration is easily feasible in micro-companies. 

•  As part of the revision, the Commission intends to further reduce the administrative burden 
of  EMAS,  which  will  be  particularly  beneficial  for  SMEs.  EMAS  should  be  made  more 
accessible, more understandable and more effective, with less red-tape but maintaining 
the excellence of the scheme. Also its "visibility" should be increased through enhanced 
promotion by the Commission and Member States, which would also make it an interesting 
marketing  instrument  for  registered  SMEs.  It  is  also  planned  that  Member  States  will  be 
encouraged to offer incentives to registered SMEs.  

5.3. 

Focused  financial  assistance  and  a  multiannual  financial  programme  for 
sustainable production in SMEs 

Another way to help SMEs comply with environmental legislation more cost-effectively, and 
generally  improve  their  environmental  performance,  is  to  spread  the  use  of  best  available 
techniques  and  promote  innovative  technologies  and  practices.  For  this  type  of  investment 
SMEs need specific public incentives and help with participation in research programmes or 
other programmes in support of innovative environmental technologies.18 

In the new European financial period 2007-2013 specific funding has been designed for SMEs 
and  environmental  policy.  Under  the  subsidiarity  principle,  Member  States  and  regional 
authorities  play  often  a  specific  role  in  their  management.  The  most  relevant  sources  of 
funding are listed below. 

17 
18 

Pilot projects have already been successfully carried out. See for instance http://www.life-pioneer.info  
See the EU Environmental Technologies Action Plan: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/etap  

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•  In  the  proposed  LIFE+  Regulation  a  multiannual  programme  of  €5  million  for  the 
period  2008-2013  has  been  designed  to  support  environmental  compliance  assistance 
measures for SMEs, covering most of the actions described in paragraphs 5.2, 5.4 and 5.5. 
Activities that could be supported could be for instance the creation of cluster coordination 
bodies for EMAS registration, regional compliance assistance programmes to offer SMEs 
free or facilitated environmental audit and guidance, sector-specific information initiatives, 
SME-oriented environmental training of business support networks, etc.  

•  The  new  instruments  of  the  Cohesion  Policy  2007-13  allow  substantial  funds  for 
Member  States  for  investments  in  environmental  protection,  especially  for  SMEs. 
Following  the  "Lisbon  priorities"  and  the  principle  of  the  integration  of  environmental 
protection requirements into the definition and implementation of Community policies and 
activities,19  a  large  part  of  the  environmental  funding  for  SMEs  will  come  from  the 
Structural  Funds.  In  particular  one  of  the  priority  categories  of  expenditure  for  the  new 
European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund20 refers to "assistance to 
SMEs  for  the  promotion  of  environmentally-friendly  products  and  production  processes 
(introduction  of  effective  environment  managing  system,  adoption  and  use  of  pollution 
prevention technologies, integration of clean technologies into firm production)". Also the 
new  European  Social  Fund21  includes  among  its  objectives  training  and  information  in 
SMEs  on  "eco-friendly  technologies  and  management  skills".  Member  States  should 
allocate  substantial  and  sufficient  resources  to  these  objectives  in  their  programming 
documents  and  in  their  applications  for  EU  Structural  Funds  for  the  period  2007-2013, 
applying at regional level the most appropriate good practices listed in Annex I and II. 

•  Environmental  investments  have  been  identified  as  one  of  the  main  sectors  for  support 
under  JEREMIE  (Joint  European  Resources  for  Micro  to  Medium  Enterprises),22  a 
new initiative that will enter its operational phase in 2007 and will allow Member States to 
use  Structural  Funds  to  set  up  (regional)  financial  instruments  for  SMEs,  including 
advisory and technical assistance, equity and venture capital and guarantees. 

•  The  currently  applicable  Guidelines  for  State  aid  for  environmental  protection  allow 
Member  States  to  grant  transitional  investment  aid  to  help  SMEs  adapt  to  Community 
standards  in  environmental  policy.  They  also  allow  investment  aid  to  improve  on 
environmental  standards  and  for  investments  in  energy  saving.23  When  reviewing  the 
environmental aid guidelines the Commission will assess whether aid should be authorised 
for early adaptation to future Community standards instead of aid for adaptation to existing 

19 
20 

21 
22 
23 

Article 6, Treaty establishing the European Community. 
Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11.07.2006, and Regulation (EC) No 1080/2006 of the EP 
and Council of 5.07.2006. 
Regulation (EC) No 1081/2006 of the EP and Council of 5.07.2006. 
See http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/funds/2007/jjj/jeremie_en.htm  
Aid  to  SMEs  for  advisory/consultancy  services  in  the  environmental  field  may  be  granted  under  the 
provisions of Regulation (EC) No 70/2001 of 12.01.2001 on the application of Articles 87 and 88 of the 
EC Treaty to State aid for small and medium-sized enterprises. Aid for environmental training activities 
is  allowed  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  Commission  Regulation  (EC)  No  68/2001  of 
12.01.2001  on  the  application  of  Articles  87  and  88  of  the  EC  Treaty  to  training  aid.  Aid  of  up  to 
€200,000, granted over any period of three years in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 
1998/2006 of 15.12.2006 on the application of Articles 87 and 88 of the Treaty to de minimis aid, is not 
be considered as state aid. 

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standards,  acting  thus  as  an  incentive  for  a  proactive  behaviour  by  SMEs  towards 
environmental rules. 

•  The  Competitiveness  and  Innovation  framework  Programme  2007-2013  (CIP)24  is 
designed  to  enhance  the  competitiveness  and  innovation  capacity  of  the  Community  and 
has  a  strong  emphasis  on  SMEs,  who  will  be  the  main  beneficiaries  of  the  programme, 
either directly  or indirectly. The CIP includes a sub-programme on  Entrepreneurship and 
Innovation to facilitate access to finance for the start-up and growth of SMEs, and includes 
€430  million  for  investments  in  eco-innovation  activities.  The  sub-programme  on 
Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE) will also include €727 million for  energy efficiency and 
renewable energy projects. 

•  Finally,  with  the  launch  of  several  new  or  significantly  revised  EU  financial  instruments 
for  the  period  2007-2013,  the  European  Commission  will  publish  a  handbook  (in 
electronic  and  printed  form)  setting  out  new  funding  opportunities  for  projects  that 
support improved environmental compliance and performance among SMEs. 

5.4. 

Building local environmental expertise for SMEs 

SMEs should be able to find local experts who can answer their questions and tell them about 
their  duties,  and  the  opportunities  related  to  environmental  policy.  This  objective  will  be 
pursued with the following actions. 

in  business 

•  The  Commission  will  be  organising  a  first  series  of  capacity-building  seminars  in  the 
Member States in 2007 to start building wherever necessary a network of environmental 
experts 
(business  associations/Chambers  of 
Commerce/Euro Info Centres/sectoral or district organisations) to help SMEs. The focus of 
the workshops will be on where to find information, presenting both the legal requirements 
and the benefits of improved environmental performance, and including a training module 
on  how  to  provide  assistance  to  SMEs  (reactive  approach)  and  how  to  involve  SMEs  in 
environment policy beyond compliance (proactive approach). 

support  organisations 

•  The Euro Info Centres (EIC) Network, and from 2008 the new network in support of 
business  and  innovation,  integrating  the  services  of  EICs  and  the  Innovation  Relay 
Centres (IRCs), will support the efforts of the Commission in creating the adequate local 
environmental expertise and in implementing the various actions of the Programme by25: 

(a) 

(b) 

promoting partnerships with public or private organisations, SME associations, 
and district/sectoral/cluster organisations helping SMEs to take full advantage 
of the opportunities offered by the Programme and helping them to comply in 
the most cost-effective way with EU legislation, increasing their eco-efficiency 
and eco-innovation capacity; 

working  proactively  with  SMEs  to  explain  existing  or  new  environmental 
legislation  affecting  them,  using  the  most  effective  means,  including  on-site 
visits, websites, newsletters, seminars, to raise awareness about environmental 
impacts and the benefits of a proper environmental management system. 

24 
25 

Decision No 1639/2006/EC of the EP and Council of 24.10.2006  
See Call for Proposals (ENT/CIP/07/0001) "Services in support of business and innovation". 

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5.5. 

Better communication and more targeted information  

The lack of general awareness on environmental issues among SMEs is not disputed26. It is 
clear  that  this  problem  needs  to  be  addressed  in  order  to  ensure  greater  awareness  of 
legislation, and as a result increased compliance. Where it exists at all, concern about safety, 
health and the environment is limited to quite specific overt threats.  

•  The Commission will establish a new multilingual website, linked to the SME Portal27, 
and designed to become a main source of information for SME support networks on 
EU  environmental  policy  and  SMEs,  with  a  related  awareness  raising  campaign.  The 
website  will  contain  general  information  on  existing  and  forthcoming  environmental 
legislation affecting SMEs, but will focus in particular on matters of interest to SMEs like: 
implementation,  management  tools  available,  funding  opportunities,  a  selection  of  good 
practices  by  sector  and  geographical  criteria,  available  training,  relevant  results  from  the 
demonstration  projects  on  sustainable  production  in  SMEs  recently  funded  by  LIFE-
Environment (LIFE III), and links to national initiatives or other sources of information. 

•  The  Commission  will  develop  some  operational  guidelines  to  accompany  SMEs  step-
by-step  in  addressing  their  main  environmental  impacts:  energy  consumption,  waste 
production,  management  of  chemicals,  air  emissions,  and  emissions  of  pollutants  into 
water  and  soil.  These  toolkits  will  take  a  gradual  approach,  increasing  the  level  of 
sophistication according to the sector, and the size and needs of the company, and will use 
simple non-technical language. 

6. 

CONCLUSION AND WAY FORWARD 

This  Programme  and  its  implementation  will  be  regularly  reviewed  by  the  Commission  in 
collaboration  with  the  Member  States,  through  a  network  of  national  "SME  & 
environment"  contact  points  to  be  nominated  by  Member  States.  During  annual  meetings 
the  network  will  monitor  the  implementation  of  the  Programme,  exchange  knowledge  and 
experience, and guide the approach of the Commission for future initiatives in this field. 

The  Commission  is  committed  to  the  implementation  of  this  Programme.  "Improving 
environmental performance and eco-efficiency of SMEs" is also part  of  the priorities  of  the 
"Modern SME Policy for Growth and Employment". The Commission asks Member States, 
the European Parliament and the Council to: 

–  endorse this Programme and encourage its rapid implementation through national 

implementation plans; 

26 

27 

For  example,  70%  of  French  SMEs  admit  to  be  no  or  little  informed  about  the  environmental  tools 
available (EMS, energy certificates, fiscal incentives, etc.) [ADEME 6.2.2007] and 95% of UK SMEs 
declare  that  they  would  like  more  information/guidance  on  environmental  matters  [SME-nvironment 
2005, Environment Agency]. 
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sme/index_en.htm 

EN 

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–  envisage  by  2010  a  first  assessment  by  the  Commission  jointly  with  Member 
States on the implementation of the Programme, including detailed information on 
the  Compliance  Assistance  measures  undertaken,  data  on  the  contribution  by 
SMEs  to  environmental  problems,  data  on  the  compliance  rate  of  SMEs  with 
environmental legislation, and recommendations for future actions.  

EN 

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   EN