COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the monitoring framework for the 8th Environment Action Programme: Measuring progress towards the attainment of the Programme's 2030 and 2050 priority objectives
Date: 2022-07-26
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: EU environmental policy, EU programme, environmental cooperation, environmental impact, environmental monitoring, environmental protection, management of resources, pollution control, reduction of gas emissions, sustainable development

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 26.7.2022  COM(2022) 357 final  COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the monitoring framework for the 8th Environment Action Programme: Measuring progress towards the attainment of  the Programme's 2030 and 2050 priority objectives  
 
 
1.  Introduction 

The 8th environment action programme (8th EAP)1 to 2030 aims to accelerate the green transition 
and  ensure  decisive  action  to  protect  and  restore  the  environment.  Ever  since  1973,  the 
development and coordination of EU environment policy has been guided by general environment 
action programmes, which have provided the framework for environment and climate action by 
the EU and its Member States. The 8th EAP builds on the objectives of the European Green Deal 
(EGD)2, which is the EU’s growth strategy for achieving a climate-neutral, resource-efficient, non-
toxic, resilient and competitive circular economy in a just and inclusive way. The programme is 
also  fundamental  to  achieving  the  environmental  and  climate  objectives  under  the  UN  2030 
Agenda,  its  sustainable  development  goals  (SDGs)  and  multilateral  environmental  and  climate 
agreements. 

Against  the  backdrop  of  a  series  of  challenging  economic  and  geopolitical  crises,  including 
Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the 8th EAP represents the determination of the EU and its 
Member States to address the climate, biodiversity and pollution crises and to make the EU more 
resilient to future shocks. The 8th EAP lays down a long-term priority objective for 2050 to live 
well,  within  planetary  boundaries,  and  six  thematic  priority  objectives.  It  also  comprises  an 
ambitious framework of 34 ‘enabling conditions’ for achieving these objectives in line with the 
EGD’s ‘do no harm’ oath and a just and fair transition which leaves no one behind.3 

The  8th  EAP  2050  priority  objective:  ‘By  2050  at  the  latest,  people  live  well,  within  the 
planetary boundaries in a wellbeing economy where nothing is wasted, growth is regenerative, 
climate  neutrality  in  the  Union  has  been  achieved  and  inequalities  have  been  significantly 
reduced. A healthy environment underpins the wellbeing of all people and is an environment in 
which biodiversity is conserved, ecosystems thrive, and nature is protected and restored, leading 
to  increased  resilience  to  climate  change,  weather-  and  climate-related  disasters  and  other 
environmental risks. The Union sets the pace for ensuring the prosperity of present and future 
generations globally, guided by intergenerational responsibility.’ 

Monitoring main trends in a coherent way with the right indicators is key to ensuring that the EU 
is making progress towards its environmental and climate objectives. To support and strengthen 
an  integrated  approach,  the  8th  EAP  puts  in  place  a  governance  mechanism  and  tasks  the 
Commission with establishing a new monitoring framework for measuring progress towards its 
priority  objectives  -  the  8th  EAP  monitoring  framework  (‘8th EAP  MF’).  The  monitoring 
framework  is  to  be  based  on  a  limited  number  of  headline  indicators,  including  systemic 
indicators on the links between the environment and social dimensions and the economy, enabling 
the EU to track progress towards green transition and give a high-level strategic political oversight. 
The  Commission  is  tasked  to  report  annually  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  on 
actions taken and to outline possible future actions. 

Decision (EU) 2022/591 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 April 2022 on a General 

1 
Union Environment Action Programme to 2030 (8th EAP). 
2 
3  

COM(2019) 640 final. 
Council Recommendation on ensuring a fair transition towards climate neutrality, COM(2021) 801 final. 

1 

 
 
 
                                                           
2.  General features of the 8th EAP monitoring framework 

The 8th EAP’s governance mechanism involves annual monitoring, assessment and reporting by 
the  Commission  on  the  progress  towards  the  programme’s  six  priority  objectives,  taking  into 
consideration  the  enabling  conditions  and  the  overall  goal  of  achieving  systemic  change.  The 
Commission is to be supported by the European Environment Agency (EEA) and the European 
Chemicals Agency (ECHA), which is developing an indicator framework on chemicals. 

The 8th EAP headline indicator set is at the core of the governance mechanism. Under Article 4(3) 
of the programme Decision, the indicators must build on existing data to minimise administrative 
burden and reflect the latest developments as regards the availability and relevance of data and 
indicators. Further, the monitoring framework must be based on a methodology that enables the 
Commission to track the distance to targets related to priority objectives. Where EU legislation 
lays down legally binding EU targets, the indicators that underpin them were chosen to monitor 
the relevant programme objectives and enabling conditions. For instance, the EU has agreed on a 
legally binding target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, measured in tonnes of CO2 equivalent, 
by 55% from 1990 levels by 2030. Where general legal requirements or aspirational targets and 
objectives  exist,  indicators  that  measure  progress  in  the  desired  direction  should  be  used.  For 
example,  total  waste  generated  reflects  efforts  to  apply  the  waste  hierarchy  and  therefore  to 
significantly reduce waste by 2030; share of environmental taxation in total tax revenues reflects 
the polluter pays principle. 

The 8th EAP 2030 objectives and the 2050 vision requires indicators that measure long-term results 
in  the  EU  and  Member  States  (‘impact’  or  ‘outcome’  indicators)4.  However,  in  some  cases, 
indicators  that  focus  on action  taken  (‘output’  indicators)  are  included,  where  there  is  a  strong 
policy relevance or link to the agreed target. The indicator on protected areas is an example of the 
latter, given its link to the target on protecting 30% of land and sea area by 2030. 

The  8th  EAP  MF  comprises  a  selected  headline  indicators  to  provide  a  high-level  political 
summary.  The  monitoring  framework  builds  on  sector-specific  monitoring  tools  to  ensure 
coherence and minimise administrative burden. These tools include the Energy Union and climate 
action governance5, the circular economy monitoring framework, the EU biodiversity monitoring 
framework6, the EU bioeconomy monitoring system7 and the forthcoming monitoring framework 
on zero pollution8. It also takes account of the insights from the environmental implementation 
review9. 

COM ‘Better regulation toolbox’, November 2021 edition, p. 358.  
Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of 11 December 2018. 
EU biodiversity strategy dashboard and action tracker: https://dopa.jrc.ec.europa.eu/kcbd/dashboard/. 
Related Dashboards: https://knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/visualisation/eu-bioeconomy-monitoring-

4 
5 
6 
7  
system-dashboards_en; https://knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/biodiversity/topic/eu-biodiversity-strategy-actions-
tracker_en. 
8 
9 

COM(2021) 400 final and Staff Working Document (2021) 141. 
COM(2019) 149 final. 

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Broad agreement on environmental headline indicators will support coherent messages in reporting 
on environmental and climate policies from a broader perspective, such as: 

 
 
 

 

 

 

the ‘EGD visualisation tool’, which also covers digital and fairness aspects10 
the annual EU progress reports on all 17 SDGs11 
the  resilience  dashboard’s  holistic  assessment  of  resilience  in  the  EU  and  its  Member 
States12 
the transition performance index that ranks 45 countries’ progress on four dimensions of 
the sustainability transitions13 
the European Semester which, in addition to its focus on broad economic and employment 
policy coordination, provides SDG reporting across all Member States14 and 
the  Composite  Indicators  &  Scoreboards  Explorer15  interactive  tool  hosting  over  100 
multidimensional measures.  

The 8th EAP MF is aligned with the final report of the Conference on the Future of Europe and its 
proposals in the area of climate change and the environment16. 

3.  Stakeholder consultation 

The Commission published a consultative paper on the proposed approach and architecture for the 
8th EAP MF on 17 February 2021, which outlined the existing sets of indicators and the principles 
used to guide the selection of headline indicators. This paper, together with a complementary note 
of  14 July  202117  comprising  a  first  proposal  for  headline  indicators  were  the  basis  for  the 
consultations  that  took  place  from  July  2021  to  January  2022.  The  Commission  organised  a 
workshop for Member States and a workshop for external stakeholders in autumn 2021 to discuss 
the proposed set of indicators. Following the political agreement on the 8th EAP, the Commission 
revised the list of headline indicators in line with the feedback received and consulted Member 
States again on this revised list. 

The consultation facilitated an in-depth look at indicators within specific thematic areas and sector-
specific monitoring tools. It guided the choice of headline indicators as the basis for the annual 
progress reports and helped to identify indicator gaps, with placeholders agreed for areas where an 
indicator  is  not  yet  ready  for  use  or  annual  data  are  not  available.  A  need  was  identified  for 

https://ec.europa.eu/info/research-and-innovation/strategy/support-policy-making/support-national-

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/egd-statistics/. 
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/sdi 
https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/strategic-planning/strategic-foresight/2020-strategic-foresight-

10 
11 
12 
report/resilience-dashboards_en 
13 
research-and-innovation-policy-making/transitions-performance-index-tpi_en 
14 
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/infographs/sdg-country-overview/ 
15  
https://composite-indicators.jrc.ec.europa.eu/explorer  
16  
https://futureu.europa.eu/pages/reporting 
17 
https://ec.europa.eu/environment/news/8th-environment-action-programme-commission-consults-
monitoring-framework-headline-indicators-2021-07-19_en. 

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additional  indicators  for  the  more  in-depth  assessments  in  2024  and  2029  (see  Section  5)  and 
indicators that did not make the final list will be used for this purpose.  

Some indicators, such as those measuring greenhouse gas emissions18 and organic farming, were 
swiftly  identified  as  headline  indicators  based  on  the  wide  consensus  that  emerged  from  the 
consultations. For areas such as zero pollution choices had to be made. The selected indicators best 
reflect the systemic nature of environmental and climate challenges and policies, while specific 
areas will continue to be assessed using some targeted monitoring tools. A separate chapter on its 
holistic 2050 vision and indicators that relate to several priority objectives or key initiatives were 
included.  For  example,  the  material  footprint  indicator  reflects  global  environmental  pressures 
related to EU consumption. 

There was also a strong call to strengthen the ecosystem health angle. Consequently, three headline 
indicators were included for the biodiversity chapter to measure progress towards the objective to 
halt and reverse biodiversity in terms of both individual species and ecosystems. Moreover, in the 
climate adaptation chapter, the indicator for drought impact on ecosystems was favoured over the 
one for drought risks. In addition, an indicator on land take was included in the crosscutting 2050 
vision chapter. 

For some areas, there was agreement to use proxy indicators. For example, for zero pollution, the 
amount of nitrates in groundwater was chosen as an indicator of clean water, even though it is not 
updated  annually.  Albeit  it  does  not  quantify  the  reduction  in  the  nutrient  losses,  it  shows  the 
impact  of  these  losses  on  water  quality  and  provides  good  indication  for  nutrient  reduction 
objectives of the Green Deal.  For biodiversity, the common bird index for instance shows best the 
decline  of  farmland  bird  populations,  mainly  due  to  agricultural  intensification.  On  ecosystem 
restoration and protection19, the most suitable indicators identified relate to protected areas and 
forest connectivity. Similar proxy indicators are also used for environmental pressures in complex 
systems. For instance, for sustainable energy system, the consultation concluded on a combination 
of two indicators: energy consumption and renewable energy. 

Finally, for a limited number of areas where indicators are not  yet available but are particularly 
policy relevant, the choice was to refer to future developments (for fossil fuel subsidies) or include 
a placeholder (environmental inequalities) (see Section 5). 

4.  Selected headline indicators 

The headline indicator set follows the structure of the 8th EAP and includes 26 indicators. Each 
specific priority objective is monitored by two indicators, except biodiversity, which uses three 

Used under the EU’s climate monitoring mechanisms which lay down the EU’s own internal reporting 

18 
rules based on internationally agreed obligations. 
19 
Work ongoing under monitoring and assessment of ecosystem services (MAES). EU methodology to map 
and assess ecosystem condition is due by end-2022, based on internationally agreed standards from the UN system 
of environmental-economic accounting. 

4 

 
 
                                                           
indicators. Five indicators each are included for environmental pressures, the enabling conditions 
and the long-term 2050 priority objective. 

INDICATOR  

TARGET 

SOURCE20  

Climate change mitigation (Article 2(2)(a)) 

1.  Greenhouse gas emission 

(GHG, index 1990=100, tonnes 
of CO2 equivalent) 

2.  GHG emissions from land use, 
land use change and forestry 
(LULUCF22, tonnes of CO2 
equivalent) 

Climate neutrality: reduce net GHG emissions 
by at least 55% by 2030 from 1990 levels21 

Climate neutrality: increase net GHG removals 
by carbon sinks from the LULUCF sector 
to -310 million tonnes CO2 equivalent by 203023 

Climate change adaptation (Article 2(2)(b)) 

3.  Climate-related economic 
losses (in EUR billion) 

4.  Drought impact on ecosystems 

(area affected in km2) 

Economic impact of climate change: reduce 
overall monetary losses from weather and 
climate-related events 

Ecosystem resilience: decrease the area 
impacted by drought and loss of vegetation 
productivity 

EEA 

EEA 

EEA24 

EEA 

A regenerative circular economy (Article 2(2)(c))  

5.  Raw material consumption 

(tonnes per capita) 

Material footprint: significantly decrease the 
EU’s material footprint25, by reducing the 
amount of raw material needed to produce the 
products consumed in the EU by reducing the 
amount of raw material needed to produce the 
products consumed in the Union 

Eurostat  

6.  Total waste generation 

(kg per capita) 

Waste prevention: significantly reduce the total 
amount of waste generated by 203026 

Eurostat  

Zero pollution and a toxic free environment (Article 2(2)(d)) 

7.  Premature deaths due to 

exposure to fine particulate 
matter (PM2.5) 
(number of premature deaths) 

Environmental impact on health: reduce 
premature deaths from air pollution by 55% 
(from 2005 levels) by 203027 

EEA 

20  
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
27 

The organisation responsible for data collection and methodology. 
Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 of 30 June 2021 (Climate Law). 
Land use, land use change and forestry. 
COM(2021) 554 final (LULUCF Regulation). 
Based on data from CATDAT from RiskLayer. 
8th EAP, Article 3(s). 
Circular economy action plan, COM(2020) 98 final and Zero pollution action plan, COM(2021) 400 final. 
ZPAP COM(2021) 400 final. 

5 

 
 
                                                           
8.  Nitrates in groundwater 

(mg of NO3/l and % monitoring 
stations with value above 50 mg 
NO3/l) 

Clean water: reduce nutrient losses by at least 
50% in safe groundwater resources 

EEA28 

Biodiversity and ecosystems (Article 2(2)(e)) 

9.  Designated terrestrial and 
marine protected areas29 
(% of total area) 

Nature protection: legally protect at least 30% of 
the EU’s land area and 30% of the EU’s sea area 
by 203030 

EEA 

10.  Common bird index 
(index: 1990 = 100) 

Biodiversity preservation: reverse the decline in 
populations of common birds31 

11.  Forest connectivity 

(0-100 %33) 

Healthy ecosystems: increase the degree of 
connectivity in forest ecosystems, with a view to 
creating and integrating ecological corridors34 
and increase climate change resilience 

EBCC/32 
BirdLife/ 
RSPB/CSO 

Joint 
Research 
Centre  

Environmental and climate pressures related to EU production and consumption (Article 2(2)(f)) 

12.  Energy consumption 

(in million tonnes of oil 
equivalent) 

Energy efficiency: reduce (primary and final) 
energy consumption by at least 13% by 2030 
compared to 202035 

13.  Share of renewable energy in 

gross final energy consumption 
(in %)36 

Sustainable energy: at least [45%] of energy 
from renewable sources in gross final energy 
consumption by 203037  

Eurostat  

Eurostat  

14.  Circular material use rate 

(in % to the overall material use) 

Sustainable industry: double the ratio of circular 
material use by 2030 compared to 202038 

Eurostat  

15.  Share of buses and trains in 
inland passenger transport 

Sustainable mobility: Increase the share of 
collective transport modes (buses, coaches and 
trains) 

Eurostat  

The annual EEA data will be validated by the data collected under the Nitrates Directive (data source: 

Nationally designated sites or Natura 2000 sites. 
EU biodiversity strategy. 
EU biodiversity strategy. 
EBCC – European Bird Census Council; RSPB – Royal Society for the Protection of Birds; CSO (Czech 

28  
ENV/JRC) available every 4 years.  
29 
30 
31 
32 
Society for Ornithology) 
33  
34 
a Regulation on nature restoration, COM(2022) 304 final of 22.6.2022. 
35 
Energy Efficiency Directive (COM(2021) 558 final) and target on renewable energy subject to the amended 
Renewable Energy Directive (COM(2021) 557 final. 
36 
37 
Directive (COM(2022) 222 final.  
38 

Including breakdown by renewable energy sources. 
See FN for indicator 12, number to be adapted, subject to final agreement on amended Renewable Energy 

From not at all (0%) to fully connected (100%).  
EU biodiversity strategy with reference to a trans-European Nature Network and Commission proposal for 

Target reflects REPowerEU announcement (COM(2022) 230 final). Subject to final agreement on amended 

Circular economy action plan COM(2020) 98 final: “in the coming decade”. 

6 

 
 
  
                                                           
(% of total inland passenger 
transport, expressed in passenger-
kilometres) 

16.  Area under organic farming 

(% of utilised agricultural area in 
km2) 

Enabling conditions (Article 3) 

17.  Share of environmental taxes 
in total tax revenues (in %) 

18.  Fossil fuel subsidies 
(EUR million)40 

19.  Environmental protection 

expenditure 
(EUR billion and % GDP) 

20.  Green bonds 

(% of total bonds issued) 

21.  Eco-innovation index42 

Member States’ performance 
compared to EU average 
(EU = 100) and trend 

Sustainable agriculture: 25% of EU agricultural 
land organically farmed by 203039 

Eurostat  

Making polluters pay: increase the share of 
environmental taxes in total revenues from taxes 
and social contributions 

Eurostat  

Making polluters pay: reduce environmentally 
harmful subsidies, in particular fossil fuel 
subsidies, with a view to phasing them out 
without delay 

Financing the transition: increase spending by 
households, corporations and governments on 
preventing, reducing and eliminating pollution 
and other environmental degradation 

European 
Commission  

Eurostat  

Sustainable investments: increase the issuance of 
green bonds to boost public and private 
financing for green investments 

EEA41 

Innovation for sustainability: increasing eco-
innovation as a driver for the green transition 

Eco-
Innovation 
Observatory  

Living well, within planetary boundaries (Article 2(1)) 

22.  Land take 

(km2 per year) 

Planetary boundaries/sustainable use of land: no 
net land take by 205043 

23.  Water exploitation index plus44 

(in %) 

Planetary boundaries/sustainable use of water: 
reduce water scarcity45 

EEA 

EEA 

Based on Bloomberg Finance L.P. used in Commission Staff Working Document on monitoring progress 

EU biodiversity strategy and Farm to Fork strategy. 
Data are published in the Staff Working Document accompanying the State of Energy Union report, 

39 
40 
COM(2021) 950 final. As of 2023, data will be based on Member States’ reporting required under the Governance 
of the Energy Union and Climate action Regulation. 
41  
towards a capital markets union, (2021) 544 final/2. 
42 
The index may be replaced to reflect new policy needs. 
43 
EU soil strategy for 2030, COM(2021) 699 final. 
44  
For info on sectors covered and time and spatial scale, see 
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/metadata/en/sdg_06_60_esmsip2.htm and  
https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/indicators/use-of-freshwater-resources-3/assessment-4 
45 

Directive 2000/60/EC (Water Framework Directive). 

7 

 
 
                                                           
24.  Consumption footprint46 

(based on life cycle assessment ) 

25.  Employment and gross added 
value of environmental goods 
and services sector 
(% of total economy) 

26.  PLACEHOLDER 

Environmental inequalities49 

5.  Closing indicator gaps 

Sustainable consumption: significantly decrease 
the EU’s consumption footprint47, i.e. the 
environmental impact of consumption 

Sustainable competitiveness: increase of the 
shares of the green economy and of green 
employment in the whole economy48 

Joint 
Research 
Centre  

Eurostat  

Environmental wellbeing: reduce environmental 
inequalities and ensure a fair transition 

The  consultations  revealed  some  monitoring  gaps  regarding  indicators  that  could  be  useful  for 
environment and  climate policymaking in the coming  years. For instance, there are no suitable 
indicators  yet  for  monitoring  healthy  ecosystems  and  soils  or  sustainable  use  of  chemicals. 
Although monitoring data are collected in many areas, some existing reporting requirements do 
not include annual data sharing at EU level, e.g. data on marine litter or chemicals in water are 
reported to the EU only every 6 years. Better implementation of existing legislation and the drive 
for open data spaces in EU policies50 will address this bottleneck. 

indicators 

that  address 

includes  systemic 

The  8th  EAP 
the  environmental-social  and 
environmental-economic nexus. For environmental inequalities, a placeholder is included while 
the EEA develops an indicator linking exposure to air pollution with the level of income. This is 
part of a broader effort to measure environmental fairness and to link the exposure of groups at 
risk of socio-economic  marginalisation to environmental and health risks.  On environmentally 
harmful  subsidies,  the  Commission  is  currently  preparing  an  implementing  act  under  the 
Regulation on Governance of the Energy Union and Climate action51, which will include reporting 
on the phasing out of energy subsidies, in particular for fossil fuels. In 2022, Eurostat has started 
to  collect  data  from  the  national  statistical  institutes  related  to  “potentially  damaging 
environmental subsidies”. On the environment-economy nexus, there are still gaps in indicators to 
assess the macroeconomic benefits  of  ecosystem  diversity, the risks  stemming from  ecosystem 
destruction,  the  cost  of  pollutants  other  than  greenhouse  gases  and  the  overall  socio-economic 
benefits and distributional aspects of the transition to environmental sustainability. 

Some indicators that were not selected as headline will be used for the two in-depth assessments 
planned in 2024 and 2029. For instance, data on climate-related human losses could help to widen 
the  perspective  when  assessing  progress  towards  climate  adaptation.  The  same  applies  to  soil 
organic carbon potential for nature restoration, share of vegetal supply in overall calorie supply 

This indicator combines consumption intensity and environmental impacts of representative products for 

46 
five areas of consumption, assessing the entire supply-chain of products (domestic and trade). 
47 
48  
49 
50 
51 

8th EAP, Article 3(s) and circular economy action plan. 
For definitions, see https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/metadata/en/env_egs_esms.htm 
See Section 5. 
COM(2020) 66 final. 
See Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999. 

8 

 
 
 
                                                           
and use of pesticides52 for assessing progress towards a sustainable food system, or an indicator on 
electrification of transport for a wider view on sustainable mobility. Indicators on environmental 
governance  covering  compliance  assurance,  transparency,  public  participation  and  access  to 
justice, are not suitable as headline indicators but will be used for the in-depth assessments. 

6.  Progress reports 

In line with the 8th EAP Decision, the Commission, supported by the EEA and ECHA, will present 
annual reports on progress towards the objectives on the basis of the monitoring framework with 
its 26 headline indicators outlined in this Communication. 

The EEA will develop the assessment methodology in close collaboration with the Commission 
and present its first annual stocktaking of progress by the end of 2023. The Commission will report 
on  its  main  findings  to  facilitate  the  annual  exchange  with  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council. In addition to the annual reporting and exchange, the 8th EAP Decision also provides for 
a mid-term review in 2024 and an evaluation in 2029. 

This  reporting  will  support  communication  on  progress  towards  achieving  the  Green  Deal 
objectives. It will be used as a basis for communicating with citizens and policymakers on whether 
our actions are ambitious enough to help us stay within planetary boundaries, or if more ambition 
is needed. The consultation has favoured indicators that can be broken down to different levels of 
governance, which will facilitate a dialogue at national, regional, city and local level.    

7.  Outlook 

The 8th EAP requires a monitoring framework that is stable while allowing for some flexibility. In 
line  with  this,  the  Commission  will  consider  proposing  changes  to  the  headline  indicators 
following  the  2024  mid-term  review  and  the  2029  evaluation,  particularly  in  view  of  new 
indicators becoming available as a result of ongoing and future work (see section 5). 

The 8th EAP tasks the Commission to further clarify and potentially streamline the interlinkages 
between existing EU-level indicator sets, monitoring frameworks and processes that track social, 
economic and environmental progress.  To this end, the Commission will build on a new tool53 
that  brings  together  data  from  over  100  indices,  scoreboards  and  dashboards  and  allows  for 
identifying interlinkages between them. The report should lead to a future beyond-GDP summary 
dashboard to measure the EU’s progress towards sustainability, wellbeing and resilience. The 8th 
EAP headline set could constitute its environmental component. 

The Commission will continue to promote coherence between the 8th EAP headline indicators and 
other crosscutting monitoring tools, such as the European Semester and EU SDG monitoring. The 
Commission has  also  started preparatory work towards an  integrated framework for wellbeing, 

Proposal for a Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive COM(2022) 305 final: target to reduce the use of 

52  
chemical pesticides by 50% by 2030. 
53  

https://composite-indicators.jrc.ec.europa.eu/explorer  

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which  could  inform  policy  makers  and  stakeholders  on  whether  environmental  policies  are 
ambitious enough for the EU to stay within the safe and just limits of our planet. 

10