Today’s Environmental Council – closing off the Green Deal and looking to 2040

European environment ministers will gather in Luxembourg this morning (17 June) for the final Environment Council meeting of Belgium’s EU Council Presidency, aiming to progress several outstanding Green Deal files.

Most of the texts should pass without issue, but deep splits will be visible in the room on some agenda points. Ministers will also be using the meeting to discuss Europe’s climate ambitions out to 2040.

Here is what you can expect in the key environmental files:

Nature Restoration Law

This by far the most contentious issue on the ministers’ agenda.

The text aims to preserve 30% of Europe’s land and sea for biodiversity, with extra targets for the restoration of habitats in poor condition.

Both Parliament and Council agreed a compromise text, but just before it was due to be formally approved, Hungary switched from supporter to opponent of the law, depriving the text of sufficient support in the Council. Poland and Slovakia subsequently indicated that they would no longer vote in favour of the law.

The file has sparked strong feelings on both sides – in May, eleven environmental ministers wrote to their counterparts in the Council, urging them to adopt the proposal.

At this late stage in the process, the text cannot realistically be changed, which limits the possibilities for compromise.

Over the weekend Austrian Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler indicated that she would now vote in favour of the text, meaning that support from just one extra country would be enough for the text to pass into law.

The text is in Monday’s agenda as a discussion item, with the possibility of a vote, although this is unlikely if there is insufficient support in the room.

Green Claims Directive

The Green Claims Directive will regulate companies’ voluntary claims about how environmentally friendly their products and services are. The rules would require companies to substantiate their claims with scientific methods and technical knowledge. The text would also regulate how companies communicate these claims.

If companies were found to advertise the environmental benefits of their products in a misleading, vague, or unsubstantiated way, they could face penalties including confiscation of revenue and a fine of 4% of annual turnover.

The file was only proposed by the European Commission in March 2023, so the Council is still forming its first formal position on the file. The file is expected to pass on Monday.

The Parliament has already adopted its first position. If the Council reaches agreement on Monday, the two institutions will start negotiating on a compromise text.

2040 decarbonisation targets

The 2040 target is a key milestone on the path to net zero by 2050. Urged by its scientific advisors and the Greens, Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra floated a 90% target, which environment ministers have been mulling over.

It is the first climate target with a potential to significantly impact the sensitive agriculture sector. Alongside concerns over EU competitiveness and access to EU funds, ministers are expected to raise concerns like lack of fiscal space, or their regional specificities.

This will be the last exchange under the Belgian Presidency, who have made a point of speaking about the target often.

Countries like Croatia and Slovenia can be expected to continue to make their support contingent on EU funding – while Germany and Austria cannot take a stand due to lack of agreement in their respective capitals.

Ministers will focus on two questions: How the EU 2040 climate target and the post-2030 framework should be designed; and how demand-side measures like circularity and the shared economy can contribute to decarbonisation.

Discussions should ultimately lead to a binding legal carbon reduction target for 2040.

Waste Framework Directive

The revision of the Waste Framework Directive proposes more binding and higher targets for reducing food waste. The text also tackles textile waste by introducing producer responsibility systems (EPR), which will oblige those producers who sell textiles in the EU to cover the costs of collecting, sorting and recycling their waste.

This will be the Councils’ first formal position on the file, and is expected to be adopted.

This will then allow the Council to kick-off negotiations with the Parliament, who agreed its position in March.

[Edited by Donagh CagneyZoran Radosavljevic]

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