Renewed EU Sustainable Development Strategy

Editor's note 21Mar13: Source D141 (common sections), D241, D341.

Status quo and objectives

The EU Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS) was first launched at the 2001 Gothenburg Summit, following the inclusion of 'sustainable development' as a central EU objective in the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam and providing an environmental dimension to the Lisbon Strategy. The Strategy was renewed in 2006 is subject to regular review.

The overall aim of the 2006 Renewed EU Sustainable Development Strategy is to identify and develop ways for the EU to create "sustainable communities able to manage and use resources efficiently" to improve the quality of life now and for future generations. Seven key priority areas are identified, including conservation and management of natural resources which includes soil and forest protection. One of its main objectives is "improving management and avoiding overexploitation of renewable natural resources such as fisheries, biodiversity, water, air, soil and atmosphere, restoring degraded marine ecosystems by 2015 in line with the Johannesburg Plan (2002) including achievement of the Maximum Yield in Fisheries by 2015".

Although the EU SDS does not focus specifically on combating desertification, the above objective encompasses soil protection to some extent. The 2009 progress report highlights a number of achievements, but notes: "Soil quality continues to deteriorate with climate change."

Structure and components

The policy includes the EU's goals for sustainable development, followed by a set of key objectives and guiding principles, and ways to coordinate the Lisbon Strategy with the goals of the SDS. The policy also outlines seven key challenges, including an overall objective, set of operational objectives and targets, and a set of action items for the EU to implement progress toward each challenge. It concludes with a set of cross-cutting measures, financing mechanisms, and implementation, monitoring and follow-up activities.

Funding relies on existing mechanisms, such as Life +, Research and Technological Development (RTD), and market-based instruments, such as removal of subsides that are contrary to the sustainable development objectives.

Actors involved in the policy development process include the EU, its Member States, and a wide range of stakeholders.

Implementation

Member States are required to report bi-annually on their progress toward the EU SDS to ensure implementation of the overarching goals. Prior to this requirement, countries were already required to submit national sustainable development strategies (NSDS) to the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (UNCSD). In many cases, these processes have been aligned. Development and implementation of these plans includes input from local authorities, civil society, industry and academia. The following is the status for the EU countries included in the LEDDRA project:

• Greece: The NSDS was adopted in 2002. The first report to the Commission on the EU SDS was provided in 2007. The NSDS focuses on 'Green Growth', and is linked to the goals of the EU 2020 strategy, with specific focus on development investments; economic activity; rural development and creating new jobs. The priority sectors include: agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, construction, infrastructure development and energy.
• Italy: The NSDS was adopted in 2002. The first report on the EU SDS was published in 2007. Plans to align the NSDS with the EU SDS reporting are still being developed. The NSDS focuses primarily on the environment, and decoupling economic growth and pressure on natural resources in the agriculture, energy and transport sectors and follows the themes outlined in the EU 6th Environmental Action Programme. The four main priority areas foreseen for 2012 include: implementation of the National Action Plan for Green Public Procurement; improvement of environmental quality of products of SMEs; involvement of big retailers following the Integrated Policy Product (IPP) approach; and sustainable tourism.
• Spain: The NSDS was adopted in 2007, and was developed within the framework of the renewed EU SDS. The first report on the EU SDS was published in 2007. There is strong regional participation in the national planning process, and four regional plans have been approved and will be aligned with the national strategy. A set of 74 indicators was developed to monitor Spain's progress toward implementing its sustainable development goals.

Among the main instruments of the SDS is the requirement for an impact assessment by Commission for all policy proposals.

The Renewed EU SDS strategy provides an overarching framework for conservation and protection of natural resources and includes overall sustainability goals that are congruent with soil protection, in cropland, ranging land and forests.

However, priorities outlined by Greece, Italy and Spain focus largely on green growth, rather than on soil protection measures. Horizontal references to land uses are missing, although they are implicitly included in sectoral strategies (e.g. agriculture).

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