CHAIR’S WELCOME

Dear All,

the next ENVI meetings will take place on 28 and 29 October.

On 29 October we will hold an exchange with Sandra Gallina, the

freshly appointed Director General for Health and Food Safety in DG SANTE, on the vaccine strategy in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. When it comes to

vaccines and vaccinations, the stakes could not be higher. Getting

the vaccine strategy right will be key if we are to put the pandemic behind us: the effectiveness and speedy roll-out of the vaccines will be essential, but they need to go hand-in-hand with trust and transparency for EU citizens to ensure

vaccinations are carried out en masse.

Last week Commissioner Kyriakides signed the third contract with a

pharmaceutical company as part of the Advance Purchase Agreements Programme. Johnson & Johnson is the third company to sign such contract after AstraZeneca and Sanofi-GSK. The Commission has also successfully concluded exploratory talks with CureVac, BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna. The exchange will be an opportunity to be briefed about the discussion with pharma

companies and discuss the actions proposed in the Commission Communication of 15 October on preparedness for COVID-19 vaccination strategies and vaccine deployment. We will look for example at how to increase vaccination capacity, public awareness campaigns and coordinated efforts to tackle misinformation. Above all, this will be an opportunity for lawmakers to

scrutinise the work of the Commission and Member States because, especially in times of crisis, accountability remains as important as ever.

As work continues on the health front, so does our commitment in the fight against the climate emergency. On 28 October it will be the first opportunity to discuss in ENVI the draft report on the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). This mechanism will serve to ensure that, as the EU continues to increase its climate ambition, its partners also play ball. This is an instrument to

raise the level playing field and in no way a form of protectionism via the backdoor. The CBAM would place a carbon price on imports of certain goods from outside the EU, in order to push third countries to raise their climate ambition and reduce the risk of 'carbon leakage'. Carbon leakage would run against Europe's efforts to become climate-neutral by 2050, by relocating -

rather than reducing - emissions. The Commission plans to present a legislative proposal on the CBAM in the first half of the year. This report aims to give clear guidance and ambition to inform the Commission’s work.

When it comes to emission reduction, shipping continues to be one of the sectors lagging behind. Between 16-20 November, delegations will be convening in remote format for the 75th session of the International Maritime Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (IMO MEPC 75).

Instilling ambition in this conference is of the utmost importance to ensure that the whole shipping sector is brought “on board” on emissions’ reduction. We have thus asked Commissioner Vălean to come to ENVI on 29 October to debate the Commission’s position and strategy ahead of the conference. In the same vein on Wednesday and Thursday we will be voting on the ENVI opinion

on technical and operational measures for more efficient and cleaner maritime transport.

Last week I wrote on behalf of ENVI coordinators to Commissioner Kyriakides

and German agricultural minister Klöckner on the issue of bee guidance. The

EU needs to walk the talk when it comes to the protection of honeybees. In a resolution adopted on 19 October 2019, Parliament welcomed the EU Pollinators Initiative, but highlighted that, as it stands, it fails to protect bees and other pollinators from some of the many causes of their decline, including

intensive farming, pesticides, climate change, land-use changes, loss of habitat and invasive species. Few days afterwards, on 23 October 2019, Parliament rejected with an overwhelming majority a measure with regards to the assessment of the impact of pesticides on honeybees and requested the Commission to submit a new proposal that fully implements the 2013 bee

guidance. On 28 October we will exchange with European Court of Auditors on its Special Report on the protection of wild pollinators in the EU. We need to take urgent and transformative action to protect and restore pollinators and their services.

During the next meeting we will also vote on the requests to object to the Commission´s restriction on lead gunshots in and around wetlands. The Union and 23 Member States are Contracting Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA). Under this

agreement the Union and Member States should endeavour to phase out the use of lead shot for hunting in wetlands as soon as possible. The Commission thus considers that there is an unacceptable risk to the environment and a potential risk to human health stemming from the discharge of lead gunshot in

or around wetlands, which needs to be addressed on a Union-wide basis.

As always, you can follow the ENVI Committee meeting live at: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/envi/home.html

You can also follow the activities of the ENVI Committee on its official Twitter account @EP_ENVIRONMENT

Pascal Canfin - 27 October 2020

MEETING ITEMS

Results of the votes of the last ENVI meeting are available here.

Votes : Technical and operational measures for more efficient and cleaner

maritime transport (Vote on amendments on 28/10 , final vote on 29/10)

Sustainable corporate governance (Vote on amendments on 28/10 , final vote on 29/10)

Objection to the RPS measure restricting the use of lead in gunshot in or around wetlands (vote on 29/10)

Objections to three implementing acts on GMOs (vote on 29/10)

Considerations: Towards a WTO-compatible EU carbon border adjustment mechanism

Objection to the RPS measure restricting the use of lead in gunshot in or around wetlands

Objections to three implementing acts on GMOs

Exchange of Views: with Commissioner Adina-Ioana Vălean on the reduction of emissions from

the maritime sector

with DG Sandra Gallina on the issue of vaccines against COVID-19

with the European Court of Auditors special report 15/2020 on the protection of wild pollinators in the EU

Webinar: Health Working Group webinar on Climate Change and Health on 28

October 2020 from 12h00 – 13h30. To be webstreamed here

ENVI IN THE NEXT PLENARY

Draft agenda of the Plenary available here.

VOTES

Technical and operational measures for more efficient and cleaner maritime transport

In his draft opinion, the ENVI

Rapporteur, Mr Javi López (S&D), highlighted the importance of maritime transport contributing to climate neutrality in the EU by 2050 at the latest and of urgently including the

sector in the EU ETS. Furthermore, the Rapporteur put forth a call to the

Commission to propose a ban on using open-loop scrubbers (exhaust gas cleaning systems used to comply with sulphur oxide limits and discharging wash water into the sea). Altogether 133 amendments were tabled and 10

compromise amendments have been negotiated, covering the majority of amendments. The compromises concern issues such as climate targets in the Union and supporting measures that are at least equally ambitious at international forums such as IMO, to enable maritime transport to phase out its GHG emissions globally in line with the Paris Agreement. In particular, the

compromise amendments focus on, inter alia, measures to contribute to energy efficiency and to reduce emissions, including labelling, as well as a phase out and ban on the use of open-loop scrubbers, eco-design, alternative technologies and fuels, based on life-cycle analysis and not risking lock-in effects. Finally, the compromise amendments encompass measures directed

towards the objective of emitting zero emissions while at berth and a call to revise the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive to include binding targets for Member States and incentives for ports as well as examining the possibility of phasing out heavy fuel oil use and refill in European waters and ports. The compromises are aligned to the EP position on the MRV for shipping file.

Rapporteur: LÓPEZ (S&D), Shadows: WEISS (EPP), CHABAUD (Renew), MÉLIN (ID), PAULUS (GREENS/EFA), ZALEWSKA (ECR), BOMPARD (GUE/NGL),

Sustainable corporate governance

Given the insufficient current measures to bring about comparable, reliable and

consistent reporting by undertakings (currently there are only Commission guidelines on non-financial reporting), the draft opinion calls for the adoption of European standards with well-defined requirements in terms of the content and accessibility of non-financial information applying to at least all listed and

non-listed large undertakings operating in the EU. It further calls upon the Commission to commit to developing such standards during the upcoming review of the Non-Financial Reporting Directive. The adoption of a European legislative framework requiring undertakings to establish, implement, regularly assess and update a corporate sustainability strategy in consultation with all

relevant stakeholders is also stressed in the opinion. Rapporteur: CANFIN (Renew) Shadows: PATRICIELLO (EPP), CIUHODARU (S&D), REGIMENTI (ID), TOUSSAINT (Greens/EFA), KOPCIŃSKA (ECR), BOMPARD (GUE/NGL),

Use of lead in gunshot in or around wetlands Annex XVII to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (REACH) lays down restrictions on the manufacture, placing on the market and use of certain dangerous substances, mixtures and articles. Entry 63 of that Annex contains restrictions

with respect to lead and lead compounds. The Union and 23 Member States are Contracting Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA). Contracting Parties are required under paragraph 4.1.4 of the Action Plan annexed to AEWA to endeavour to phase out the use of lead shot for hunting in wetlands as soon as possible in

accordance with self-imposed and published timetables. The Commission considers that there is an unacceptable risk to the environment and a potentia l risk to human health stemming from the discharge of lead gunshot in or around wetlands, which needs to be addressed on a Union-wide basis. The draft

Commission measure introduces a restriction on the act of discharging lead gunshot in or around wetlands. Given the difficulty for enforcement authorities in catching hunters in the act of actually discharging gunshot, the Commission agrees that the restriction should also include the act of being in possession of lead gunshot. This draft act amends Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 accordingly.

Two draft resolutions have been tabled, objecting to this Commission measure.

Objections to three implementing acts on GMOs The implementing acts in question authorise the placing on the market of genetically modified soybean and two genetically modified maize. The objectors oppose the draft measures on the grounds that they would exceed

the implementing powers provided for in the basic act, since the authorisation of the import of these GMOs could lead to unacceptable risks to food safety and human health. They also believe that these authorisations could undermine the EU's commitments under the UN sustainable Development Goals. Parliament has the right to scrutinise draft implementing acts and to

object where it is of the view that a draft implementing act exceeds the implementing powers provided for in the basic act; however, Parliament has no power of veto.

CONISDERATIONS

Towards a WTO-compatible EU carbon border adjustment mechanism

The European Commission

adopted its Communication on the European Green Deal in December 2019. One of the key policies and measures that would be needed to achieve the Green

Deal is the proposal for a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM). This new mechanism would place a carbon price on imports of certain goods from outside the EU, in order to reduce the risk of ‘carbon leakage’. This term describes a phenomenon where companies transfer production abroad to countries that have less stringent

emission rules in place. Carbon leakage would counteract Europe’s efforts to become climate-neutral by 2050, relocating emissions to third countries rather than reducing global emissions. The draft ENVI Committee’s own-initiativ e report on this matter, titled ‘Towards a WTO-compatible EU carbon border adjustment mechanism’, as prepared by the Rapporteur calls for the

introduction of a CBAM as part of a broader Union industrial strategy which should cover eventually all imports but with initial focus on the power sector and certain energy-intensive industrial sectors. The GHG emissions content of concerned imports should be accounted for based on transparent and reliable

product-specific benchmarks representing the global average GHG emissions content of individual products. The CBAM should be designed with the highest environmental integrity in mind as a WTO compatible instrument, whose entry into force should end all other Union carbon leakage measures. Revenues generated by the CBAM should be used as new own resources for the EU

budget in full transparency about their allocation which should be earmarked for supporting the just transition and decarbonisation of Europe’s economy, and for stepping up the Union’s contribution to international climate finance. Rapporteur: JADOT (Greens/EFA), Shadows: JARUBAS (EPP), CHAHIM (S&D), CANFIN (Renew), HUHTASAARI (ID) ROOKEN (ECR),BOMPARD (GUE/NGL),

EXCHANGE OF VIEWS

Commissioner Vălean on the reduction of emissions from the maritime sector

The 75th session of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (IMO MEPC 75), will

take place, remotely, in the period 16 - 20 November 2020. According to the IMO guidelines for remote meetings, MEPC 75 will meet for

only three hours per day over a five-day period. Numerous items on the MEPC

75 agenda are of high interest for the ENVI Members, including inter alia the reduction of GHG emissions from ships, energy efficiency of ships, air pollution prevention and marine plastic litter from ships. It would be particularly important for the ENVI Committee to observe the progress made since MEPC72, when the Initial IMO Strategy for the reduction of the GHG emissions

from ships was adopted and especially the follow-up actions to this strategy, like the short-term energy efficiency measures. Commissioner Valean has been invited to ENVI to brief Members on the most recent developments at IMO level, especially in view of the upcoming MEPC 75 conference.

DG Gallina on the issue of vaccines against COVID-19

Director General for Health and Food Safety in the European Commission, Ms Sandra Gallina, will brief Members during

an exchange of views in committee on the latest developments on the issue of vaccines against COVID-19. On 17 June 2020, the Commission published its Communication on an EU Strategy for

COVID-19 vaccines, aiming at supporting actions to accelerate the development and availability of safe and effective vaccines in a timeframe between 12 and 18 months, if not earlier. To do so, and together with the Member States, the Commission is agreeing Advance Purchase Agreements (APA) with vaccine producers reserving or giving the Member States the right to buy a given

number of vaccine doses for a certain price, as and when a vaccine becomes available. At the moment, the Commission has signed three contracts as part of the Advance Purchase Agreements Programme, namely with AstraZeneca, Sanofi-GSK and Johnson & Johnson. The Commission has also successfully

concluded exploratory talks with CureVac, BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna. In return for the right to buy a specified number of vaccine doses in a given timeframe and at a given price, part of the upfront costs faced by vaccines producers will be financed from the Emergency Support Instrument (ESI). The budgetary authorities, the European Parliament and the Council, have made

EUR 2.7 billion available under the ESI and a substantial part of ESI will be dedicated to the APAs. In its Communication of 15 October on preparedness for COVID-19 vaccination strategies and vaccine deployment, the Commission underlines a series of actions to be taken into account by the Member States to ensure that vaccines are safe and available for all. Some of the actions

concern also measures to raise public awareness on vaccines and tackle misinformation. The Chair of the ENVI Committee has sent a letter to Commissioner Stella Kyriakides on behalf of a majority of coordinators, to emphasise the need for more transparency in the concluded APAs.

ECA Special Reports on the protection of wild pollinators

Pollinators increase the quantity and quality of food, and ultimately secure our food supply. The number of wild pollinators in the EU has been declining

rapidly in recent decades under the increasing threat from human activity, in particular conversion to intensive agriculture and the use of pesticides and

fertilizers. The Commission has put in place measures affecting wild pollinators

in the areas of the environment, pesticides, agriculture, cohesion, and research and innovation. In June 2018, the Commission published the Pollinators Initiative, which includes a list of actions to tackle the main threats to wild pollinators. As indicated in this special report, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) performed an audit on the Commission’s approach to protect wild

pollinators, in order to contribute to legislative updates in the areas of biodiversity, agriculture and pesticides planned in the period 2021-2022. The Court found that overall the Commission had not taken a consistent approach to the protection of wild pollinators in the EU and its actions had little effect on halting the decline, and identified gaps in key EU policies addressing the main

threats to wild pollinators. ECA recommended that the Commission should assess the need for specific measures for wild pollinators in the follow-up actions and measures for the EU biodiversity strategy to 2030; better integrate actions to protect wild pollinators in EU policy instruments addressing biodiversity conservation and agriculture; improve the protection of wild

pollinators in the pesticides risk assessment process.

NEWS FROM THE POLICY DEPARTMENT

Recent publications: Study on The EP carbon footprint: towards carbon neutrality

Briefing on the Greenhouse gas emissions from shipping: waiting for concrete progress at IMO level

Study on Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer

Briefing on Assessment of COVID-19 surveillance case definitions and data reporting in the European Union

Briefing on medicine shortage in the EU during the novel coronavirus outbreak

In-depth analysis on Brazil and the Amazon Rainforest: Deforestation, biodiversity and cooperation with the EU and international forums

Briefing on the EU's public health response to the novel coronavirus outbreak

Workshop proceedings on cancer prevention – modifiable risk factors (Health Working Group)

Study on EU public health policies - state of play, current and future challenges (also its At a glance version)

Study on EU environment and climate change policies - state of play, current and future challenges (also its At a glance version in EN and FR)

Study on international climate negotiations in view of the COP25 UN Climate Change Conference in Madrid

Upcoming publications: Briefing paper on Opportunities of post-Covid-19 European recovery funds

in transitioning towards circular and climate neutral economy (October 2020)

In depth analysis on the link between biodiversity loss and the increasing spread of zoonotic diseases (October 2020)

NEWS FROM THE AGENCIES

European Environment Agency (EEA) Countries and cities in Europe urgently need to step up adaptation to climate change impacts

Despite the increasing awareness of climate change impacts and the need to adapt, many of Europe’s cities and

towns are struggling to handle the impacts of heatwaves, severe droughts and destructive floods. Two European Environment Agency (EEA) reports stress the urgent need for action to improve adaptation and resilience at local and national government levels. .More here.

European Medicines Agency (EMA) On Thursday, 29 October, EMA is hosting

a symposium to discuss new approaches to facilitating and using input from cancer patients to inform medicine development and regulatory decision-making. The

purpose of the symposium is to identify opportunities and come up with

recommendations to further advance patients’ contribution and involvement in data collection, development and evaluation of cancer treatments. This will help EMA to translate any recommendations into concrete actions to further improve cancer treatment development and regulation. .More here.

European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) EU countries are being urged to step up

surveillance and biosecurity measures to guard against possible new outbreaks of avian influenza this year. The warning follows outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza

(HPAI) among wild and domestic birds in western Russia and Kazakhstan over the past few months. This region is a known autumn migration route for wild water birds heading to Europe. Northern and eastern Europe are likely to be the most vulnerable to new outbreaks given past experience. When HPAI was detected in the same area of Russia in the summers of 2005 and 2016,

epidemics followed in northern and eastern Europe. If the pattern is repeated this year, HPAI is expected to arrive in the same areas of Europe in autumn or

winter. Subsequent spread to countries in southern and western Europe is also possible.More here.

European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)

ECHA's Consultations following Executive Director Requests to the Committees

Following a request from ECHA's Executive Director, ECHA is launching a consultation to

support the Committees in adopting opinions on any other aspects concerning the safety of substances on their own, in mixtures or in articles.Read more

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)

Indicators for the maps in support of the Council Recommendation on a coordinated approach to the restriction of free movement in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the EU/EEA and the UK

The downloadable data file contains the data on

which the maps requested in the Council Recommendation on a coordinated approach to the restriction of free movement in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in EU/EEA and the UK are based. They are published every Thursday. More here. COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures for primary care,

including general practitioner practices, dental clinics and pharmacy settings: first update

This document provides guidance on infection prevention and control (IPC) measures to healthcare providers (Healthcare workers in general practitioner

(GP) offices, primary care clinics, dental offices/clinics, and pharmacies) in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) and the United Kingdom (UK) in order to prevent COVID-19 infection. More here.

Next meetings of the ENVI Committee: 16 November 2020 (Brussels). Future meetings: 2020 meeting dates.

Watch online the Committee meeting on the EP web site or on Europarl TV. Past meetings are available: EP Live multimedia library and you can also download the extracts of speeches.

More information: envi-secretariat@europarl.europa.eu or website of the ENVI Committee.

Subscription: To sign up for ENVI committee press releases please go to European Parliament News Subscription Services to subscribe.

For media enquiries, please write to envi-press@europarl.europa.eu Further information sources: The EP Policy Departments publish studies, notes, information notes and workshop proceedings. To request a hard copy of any publication please contact Poldep-Economy-Science@europarl.europa.eu. The

European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) provides research publications in the area of environment, public health and food safety. You can find all the latest publications on the European Parliament website’s Think Tank pages.

About the editor: European Parliament, Directorate General for Internal Policies of the Union, Secretariat of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety - Responsible administrators: Giacomo Fassina, Valentina Papa. Responsible assistants: Anna Pawlik, Angelika Bruels.

Legal disclaimer: The items contained herein are drafted by the ENVI Committee Secretariat and are provided for general information purposes only. The content is indicative and subject to changes. The opinions expressed in this document are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official

position of the ENVI Committee. The newsletter contains links to websites that are created and maintained by other organisations. The ENVI Committee does not necessarily endorse the views expressed on these websites. Photos @AdobeStock