Environmental regulation: concrete steps to improve businesses

As part of its role in promoting growth and jobs, and better regulation DG Enterprise and Industry is organising a conference in Brussels on 22 June 2006 on reducing administrative burdens on industry from the field of environmental regulation. The aim is to present the results of research to identify initiatives which will streamline and simplify environment-related regulatory requirements for companies. 

In the field of environmental regulation, European companies face many different environment-related regulatory requirements in relation to permits, monitoring, reporting and inspection (as a result of both EU and national legislation). These requirements are necessary for the effective operation of legislation in place to protect the environment. However, many such requirements have been introduced over time and insufficient attention has been paid to their overall cost-effectiveness, coherence, proportionality and the accumulation of administrative burdens and costs. As part of their national Better Regulation strategies many countries are putting measures in place to streamline environment-related requirements.

The conference will see the launch of a BEST report that will help to focus high level political attention on key issues to bring about concrete changes in national policies and practices to improve the business environment. The scope of the conference is the transposition of EU legislation at the Member State and regional level. Member States’ concrete examples of successful simplification and streamlining measures will be presented along with the reasons why the initiatives have succeeded.

Speakers will be drawn from national ministries, environmental protection agencies and industry trade bodies. They will showcase national and regional initiatives which have been implemented in such a way as to minimise the burden on industry whilst respecting EU Directives on the environment which ensure continued high levels of environmental protection and public participation in decision-making. Overall the use of the examples presented at the conference and in the accompanying BEST report on the subject will improve the cost-effectiveness, proportionality and coherence of transposition of EU legislation at the Member State level.

The conference will be useful for policy makers, desk officers and legislation writers, in fact anyone with an interest in learning about taking practical measures to reduce environment related regulatory burdens. Delegates will represent industry and environment ministries, permitting and enforcement authorities, national and Europe-wide trade bodies, industry, SMEs and non-governmental organisations.

Further information: Programme and on-line registration

                                 EU Environmental legislative framework