EU Environmental Council

Thursday 12th October 2017 Written Statements

[The Minister for Climate Change and Industry (Claire Perry)]

I will attend the EU Environment Council, which will take place on 13 October in Luxembourg.



Following adoption of the agenda, the list of “A” items will be approved.



Under legislative proposals, the Council will debate two proposals with the aim to get an agreement in the Council of Ministers:

A regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on binding annual greenhouse gas emission reductions by member states from 2021 to 2030 for a resilient energy union and to meet commitments under the Paris agreement and amending regulation No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council on a mechanism for monitoring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions and other information relevant to climate change. This is known as the effort sharing regulation (ESR).

A regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the inclusion of greenhouse gas emissions and removals from land use, land use change and forestry into the 2030 climate and energy framework and amending regulation No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council on a mechanism for monitoring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions and other information relevant to climate change. This is known as the land use, land use change and forestry regulation (LULUCF).

Under non-legislative proposals, the Council will seek to adopt conclusions on the EU priorities for the third meeting of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-3), and on the preparations for the 23rd session of the conference of the parties (COP 23) to the United Nations framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC).

The following items will be discussed under any other business:

1. Reports on recent international meetings:

Sixth session of the meeting of the parties (MOP 6) to the convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (Aarhus convention),

Joint high-level segment under the meetings of the parties to the Aarhus convention and its protocol on PRTRs,

Third session of the meeting of the parties (MOPP 3) to the protocol on pollutant release and transfer registers,

First meeting of the conference of the parties to the Minamata convention on mercury (COP 1), (Geneva, 24-29 September 2017)

13th meeting of the conference of the parties to the United Nations convention to combat desertification (UNCCD COP 13)

2. A more transparent, more effective and safer assessment of chemical substances.

3. Importance, for the implementation of the Paris agreement, of good co-ordination and coherence between the integrated national energy and climate plans for 2030 and the long-term emissions reduction strategies, as well as of minimum quality, comparability and transparency standards.

4. 50th session of the international seminar “Science for Peace the World Over” (Erice, Italy, 20-23 August 2017).

The UK has also secured an additional AOB to encourage those member states who are ready to proceed with early ratification of the Kigali amendment to the UN Montreal protocol to protect the Earth’s ozone layer to do so in time for the 30th anniversary meeting of the parties to the protocol, in Montreal this November.

Last October, agreement was reached in Kigali to amend the protocol to phase down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) globally by around 85% by the mid-2040s. This could avoid up to 0.5 °C of global warming by the end of the century, making a major contribution to the Paris climate goal of a 2 °C limit. The amendment will come into force in 2019 as long as at least 20 countries have ratified by then.

[HCWS161]