“National leaders failed at Copenhagen: local leaders must not”: CoR launches unique database of local climate action

Published: 5 May 2010 y., Wednesday

Klimato kaita
A new initiative from the Committee of the Regions (CoR) will help signatories of the Covenant of Mayors turn their commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions into a concrete reality, as local leaders push ahead with plans to tackle climate change despite the failure of Copenhagen.

Speaking at the Covenant of Mayors signing ceremony in the European Parliament on 4 May, CoR First Vice-President Ramón Luis Valcárcel Siso said: “National leaders failed at Copenhagen: local leaders must not. We have today launched a survey on sustainable energy policies in regions and cities as the first phase of our initiative to collect and disseminate best practice in tackling climate change. I invite all signatories of the Covenant of Mayors, and all local and regional authorities, to participate. This is not simply a question of collecting information about who is doing what – it is also an opportunity to see how they are doing it, why they are doing it and how they could do it better by working together with others.”

Building on the expertise of its Europe2020 Monitoring Platform, enlarged to include contributions from Covenant of Mayors members, the CoR will compile a unique database of action being carried out at the local level to combat global warming. The data will then be shared with all the members of the platform and Covenant of Mayors signatories to allow them to learn from their peers about how best to meet their obligations to cut emissions. The results will also form part of the Committee of the Regions' contributions to the new EU Energy Action Plan, which will set the framework for European energy policy to 2020, and to the special session of the European Council devoted to energy policy in May 2011.

The data collected by the survey will constitute a significant source of ideas for local and regional authorities looking to tackle energy issues, but information alone is not enough to achieve concrete results, Vice-President Valcárcel stressed.

“Learning how others are coping with the climate challenge is only part of the story: many cities and towns lack the resources to face these issues on their own, and financial and administrative support on the ground is vital if they are to succeed. That is why the role of regions as supporting structures within the Covenant of Mayors is so important. The Committee of the Regions will focus its efforts on encouraging more of these important stakeholders to take the Covenant of Mayors pledge.”

The CoR will also continue to play its part in defining the role of local and regional authorities in the wider EU efforts to protect the environment. The CoR's commission for the environment, energy and climate change (ENVE) is preparing two flagship opinions in this area: an outlook opinion on the role of local and regional authorities in future environmental policy, by Paula Baker (UK/ALDE), requested by the Spanish EU Presidency; and an opinion on fighting climate change post-Copenhagen, by Nicola Beer (DE/ALDE).

The survey, in all languages, can be found on the website of the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform

Visit the CoR's website: www.cor.europa.eu

The Committee of the Regions

The Committee of the Regions is the EU's assembly of regional and local representatives. The mission of its 344 members from all 27 EU Member States is to involve regional and local authorities and the communities they represent in the EU's decision-making process and to inform them about EU policies. The European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council are obliged to consult the Committee in policy areas affecting regions and cities. It can appeal to the EU Court of Justice if its rights are infringed or it believes that an EU law violates the subsidiarity principle or fails to respect regional or local powers.

 

Šaltinis: europa.eu
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.

Facebook Comments

New comment


Captcha

Associated articles

The most popular articles

A (Copenhagen) Climate of disappointment

A gloomy inquest rather than angry recriminations marked the mood when the European Parliament debated the Copenhagen climate conference Wednesday (20 January). more »

The Presidency seeks to regulate illegal immigration and integration policies

At a press conference following the immigration section of the Informal Meeting of Ministers for Justice and Home Affairs in Toledo, the Spanish Secretary of State Consuelo Rumí and Commission Vice-president Jacques Barrot reported that the EU leaders set the bases for a European Immigration and Asylum Agreement. more »

Major cities join forces to make the Euro-Mediterranean partnership a success story

At the inaugural session of the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM) in Barcelona today, mayors of major cities from the European Union and the Mediterranean partner countries have joined forces to energise the Euro-Mediterranean partnership. more »

Human rights: China, Philippines and attacks on religious minorities

Three human rights resolutions - on recent attacks on religious minorities in Egypt and in Malaysia, on the case of Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo and human rights violations in China more generally, and on the situation in the Philippines - were approved by Parliament on Thursday. more »

Debating the economic and social future of Europe

During the question time that followed the presentation of the programme for Spain's Presidency of the EU to the European Parliament by the Spanish Prime Minister the main issue of interest was the path the European Union should take to recover from the crisis and improve its position in the global economy, maintaining its values and social model. more »

Iran debate: MEPs condemn regime's nuclear programme & dissent crackdown

In a charged and emotive debate on Iran the regime's nuclear programme and the crackdown on political dissent drew criticism from all sides. more »

Haiti needs rapid aid and long-term reconstruction

MEPs urged that the EU deliver on its aid pledge as soon as possible and give a solid commitment to reconstruction. more »

Rodríguez Zapatero presents the program of the EU Spanish Presidency

The Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero will today be presenting the programme of the Spanish Presidency of the EU for the first half of 2010. more »

EU and Iraq sign a Strategic Energy Partnership Memorandum of Understanding

The European Union and the Republic of Iraq have today signed in Baghdad, Iraq, a Memorandum of Understanding on a “Strategic Energy Partnership” which provides a political framework for reinforcing energy relations between Iraq and the EU. more »

EU-Latin America Conference, Towards Socially Responsible Tourism

On Monday 18 January the town of Alcalá de Henares near Madrid is to host the first ministerial meeting focusing on tourism issues to be held as part of the activities organised during this six-month period by the Spanish EU Presidency. more »