93/389/EEC: Council Decision of 24 June 1993 for a monitoring mechanism of Community CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions

COUNCIL DECISION of 24 June 1993 for a monitoring mechanism of Community CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions
(93/389/EEC)THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 130s thereof,
Having regard to the proposal of the Commission,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (1),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (2),
Whereas the 1973 (3), 1977 (4), and 1983 (5) Community action programmes on the environment stress the importance of the reduction and prevention of atmospheric pollution; whereas, in addition, the 1987 (6) action programme emphasizes the importance for  Community action to concentrate as a priority on the reduction at source of such pollution; whereas the 1993 Community programme of policy and action in relation to the environment and sustainable development has as one of its principal themes climate  change and outlines the need for action in the relevant economic sectors so that CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions are controlled;
Whereas the Council resolution of 16 September 1986 concerning new Community energy policy objectives for 1995 and convergence of the policies of the Member States (7) calls for a search for balanced solutions as regards energy and the environment;
Whereas, at its meeting in Dublin in June 1990, the European Council urged the adoption as soon as possible of targets and strategies for limiting emissions of greenhouse gases;
Whereas, at their meeting on 29 October 1990, the Council (Environment and Energy Ministers) agreed that the Community and Member States, assuming that other leading countries undertook similar commitments, and acknowledging the targets identified by a  number of Member States for stabilizing or reducing emissions by different dates, were willing to take actions aimed at reaching stabilization of the total CO2 emissions by 2000 at the 1990 level in the Community as a whole, and also that Member States  which start from relatively low levels of energy consumption and therefore low emissions measured on a per capita or other appropriate basis are entitled to have CO2 targets and/or strategies corresponding to their economic and social development, while  improving the energy efficiency of their economic activities;
Whereas, at their meeting on 13 December 1991, the Council (Energy and Environment Ministers) invited the Commission to propose concrete measures arising from the Community strategy and required that such measures should take into account the concept of  equitable burden sharing, according to the conclusions of the Council meeting of 29 October 1990;
Whereas the Commission has underlined, in the framework of a Community strategy to limit CO2 emissions and to improve energy efficiency, the need to set up a mechanism of monitoring and evaluation;
Whereas such monitoring and evaluation should be integrated as closely as possible into the existing reviews of energy programmes of Member States, as mentioned in the abovementioned Council resolution of 16 October 1986;
Whereas all Member States and the Community are signatories to the United Nations framework convention on climate change, which, when ratified, will commit the developed countries and other Parties listed in Annex I to the Convention to take measures to  limit anthropogenic emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal Protocol with the aim of returning individually or jointly to the 1990 levels these anthropogenic emissions by the end of the present decade: whereas, in this  perspective, it is desirable to ensure consistency with the monitoring mechanism to be established under the Convention; whereas this is particularly relevant as regards methodologies for compiling inventories and reporting requirements;
Whereas on the occasion of the signing of the said Convention the Community and its Member States reaffirmed the objective of stabilization of CO2 emissions by 2000 at 1990 levels in the Community as a whole, as set out in the Council conclusions of 29  October 1990, 13 December 1991, 5 May and 26 May 1992,