Annexes to COM(2004)745 - Incentives for EMAS registered organisations

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dossier COM(2004)745 - Incentives for EMAS registered organisations.
document COM(2004)745 EN
date November  9, 2004
Annex II gives an overview of the incentives provided by each Member State.

In addition to this quantitative assessment, there should also be a qualitative assessment of existing incentives. This will require a detailed study which is being commissioned under the ongoing revision of the Regulation. It is expected that the study will show which incentives prove to be most beneficial and useful for operators.

Priorities need to be established by national authorities. When designing external incentives some Member States have given EMAS more recognition and promotion than other formal (e.g. EN ISO 14001) and less formal environmental management systems while other countries took a different approach supporting systems other than EMAS. It is noted that, in general, incentives are designed for the benefit of private organisations. As EMAS is also available to public organisations it is relevant that Member States provide also incentives in this sector especially to local authorities.

Countries may learn from each other and where necessary step up efforts to provide substantial incentives for EMAS organisations. Member States have developed policies on incentives together with long-term incentive programmes to encourage the best practices. Consultations with the main stakeholders e.g. the managers of organisations usually facilitate establishing future measures taking into account their needs and expectations.

Newcomers

With a couple of exceptions, incentives in the new Member States are negligible or even non-existent. These countries have had to implement a large body of EU environment law, and although administrative capacity building and the transposition of legislation is now practically complete, national authorities and private operators alike now have to deal successfully with the new legal obligations.

Against this background, the authorities may consider EMAS as an adequate management tool for addressing these legal issues and therefore encourage both public and private organisations to participate. Real incentives for EMAS implementation and registration are a powerful way of doing this.

The Commission will continue to provide the technical assistance and information support necessary for the implementation of EMAS in private and public organisations.

Turning challenges into opportunities

This report identifies a number of challenges being faced by the scheme that cannot be overlooked.

The Commission has launched a revision of EMAS which will include, amongst other elements, looking at the legal requirements on incentives in order to strengthen their scope and efficiency. The revision process should ensure that all interested parties are consulted, thereby guaranteeing that national regulators and operators alike will be able to provide their views.

The revision of EMAS represents a turning point for the scheme, and an opportunity to make incentives play a crucial role. The Commission and national regulators need to work to identify the most appropriate policy choices for encouraging efficient management and rational use of the environment.

1Regulation N° 761/2001 of 19 March 2001.

2 BEST-Project http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/environment/events/sme_conference/presentations/best_report.pdf

3 “Buying Green” - A Handbook on environmental public procurement, Commission staff working document, SEC(2004) 1050 of 18 August 2004.

4COM(2001) 274 final of 4.7.2001.

5Directive 2004/17/EC and Directive 2004/18/EC of 31 March 2004.

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