The European Commission said on Friday that it is launching its new Environmental Implementation Review. Announced in March, the recurring review mechanism is to "give the first comprehensive overview on the state-of-play of how key environmental policies and laws have been implemented on the ground in Member States."
As part of the new initiative, the Commission foresees the publication of 28 country-specific reports detailing the situation in each member state, which will be updated every two years. "The aim of this process is to help Member States comply with the rules, anticipate problems and identify solutions and priorities before formal infringement proceedings are initiated," explained the Commission, noting that full implementation of EU environmental legislation could result in savings of €50bn every year in health costs and direct costs to the environment.
"We need to step up our work with Member States to close the gaps. The earlier we act, the less costly it will be," added EU Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella.
A detailed report on the EU Commission's Environmental Implementation Review appears on 8 June in EUWID 12/2016.