Green Week The contribution of LIFE projects to the implementation and development of EU air quality policy and legislation

(1)

Green Week 2013

The contribution of LIFE projects to the implementation and development of EU air quality policy and legislation

(2)

Scope of the study

• Assess the contribution of LIFE ENV/INF

projects to the implementation, dissemination

and further development of EU air-related

(3)

Background

• 108 projects were identified as relevant in the period

2005-2011

• 101 were short-listed for further analysis

• Carbon-related projects were not studied: different priority

(4)

Structure of the study

1. Trends from 1992 until 2011

2. Evaluation of projects in relation to EU air

policy and legislation

3. Analysis of projects’ achievements

4. Conclusions

(5)

1. Trends - Background

• 231 projects were identified as relating to air

quality in the entirety of the LIFE programme

(1992-2011)

(6)

1. Trends - Distribution of air-related LIFE

projects per year

(7)

1. Trends - Grouping

• Projected were grouped in the following areas:

–

Assessment and monitoring of air quality

–

Pollution prevention

–

Policy and management tools

–

Pollution treatment

–

Waste management and recycling

–

Awareness-raising

(8)

1. Trends - Grouping

• Those were further broken down in the

following sectors:

–

Industry

–

Transportation

–

Agriculture

(9)

1. Trends – Number of projects in different areas

Area No. of projects

Pollution prevention in industry 66

Assessment and monitoring of air quality 42

Policy and management systems in transportation 23

Pollution prevention in transportation 19

Policy and management tools 19

Waste management and recycling 18

Pollution treatment 18

Awareness-raising 11

Pollution prevention in agriculture 8

Policy and management systems in industry 4

(10)

(11)

1. Trends – Main findings I

• Most focus on preventing pollution from

industrial activities (28.57% of all projects)

• This might have had an effect on the

progressively decreasing number of projects

addressing end-of-pipe emissions

(12)

1. Trends – Main findings II

• Monitoring and assessment of air quality projects

were the majority during the early years of LIFE,

but have weaned in the later years, although are

still present

• This illustrates the initial need to acquire a good

(13)

1. Trends – Main findings III

• Policy and management tools regarding transportation and

urban planning have surged during the past five years

• The same applies for pollution prevention technology

systems in transportation

• Greater push towards the development of livable cities

–

This is illustrated by the adoption in 2006 of the Thematic

(14)

1. Trends – Main findings IV

• A very small percentage of projects (4.76%) focused directly

on communication with the public, campaigning or

awareness-raising

• This might be the outcome of difficulties in quantifying the

results of such projects

• Since all LIFE projects need to disseminate information to

the public, decreased interest might have ensued for

projects focusing solely on that

(15)

II. Legislation and policies

• The study looked at the legislation and policies

(16)

II. Legislation and policies –

Short review of EU air policy

• The 6

th

Environment Action Programme was launched in 2002 and

will remain in force until 2012

• Air quality falls within one of its four key environmental priorities,

“Environment and Health”

• The objective is to achieve “levels of air quality that do not give rise

to significant negative impact on and risk to human health and

environment”.

(17)

II. Legislation and policies –

Short review of EU air policy

• Clean Air for Europe (CAFE)

–

Launched in 2001

–

Aims to review air quality policies and assess the progress

taken towards attainment of long-term air quality

objectives

–

Sets highest priority in dealing with particulate matter

(PM) and ground-level ozone

–

High attention also given to acidification and

(18)

II. Legislation and policies –

Short review of EU air policy

• The Thematic Strategy for Air Pollution

–

Developed in 2005

–

Established air quality objectives to be achieved by 2020

–

Significant reductions in emissions of:

• SO₂ (82%) • NO_X (60%)

• primary PM_2.5 (59%) • VOCs (51%)

(19)

II. Legislation and policies –

Short review of EU air policy

• Measures proposed within the TSAP for the realisation of

those targets:

– Stricter limit values for air pollutants – Increases in energy efficiency

– Promotion of renewable energy sources

– Further examination of the impact aviation and shipping have – Reduction in the use of nitrogen in fertilisers

(20)

II. Legislation and policies – Relation

with LIFE projects

• Nearly all LIFE projects relate in one way or another with the

Thematic Strategy on Air Pollution

• 75 projects aim for the reduction of at least one pollutant

identified within the TSAP

• The rest 26 projects aim to create tools to monitor, enforce

(21)

II. Legislation and policies – Pollutants

addressed by projects

Pollutant No. of projects NO_x 28 Particulate matter 26 VOCs 19 Ozone 10 CO 9 SO_x 9 Ammonia 8

PAH, Hydrocarbons, Lead, Benzene

(22)

II. Legislation and policies - Remarks

• A significant number of projects addressed more than one air-related

directive, while there’s also significant cross-cutting with other thematic areas

– It has been almost impossible to link a project exclusively to one legislative text

• Although LIFE ENV/INF projects implement a significant part of the

legislation, some of it is not addressed at all

– This applies mostly to legislation that is highly specialised, such as Directive 2009/126/EC on Stage II petrol vapour recovery during refuelling of motor vehicles at service stations

• The directives mostly addressed were the generic ones, such as Directive

2008/50/EC Air Quality Framework Directive and 2001/81/EC on National Emission ceilings

(23)

II. Legislation and policies –

Air quality framework

Directive No. of projects

Air Quality Framework

96/62/EC & Daughter Directives Framework 83 2001/81/EC 2008/50/EC 2004/107/EC Arsenic, Cadmium, Mercury, Nickel and

Polycyclic aromatic

hydrocarbons 5

(24)

II. Legislation and policies –

Sources: Industry

Industry No. of projects

84/360/EEC

Industrial Plants

28 96/61/EC

2008/1/EC

1999/13/EC

Solvents

8 2001/80/EC

Large Combustion

Plants

3 TOTAL

39

(25)

II. Legislation and policies –

Sources: Waste

Waste

No. of projects

75/442/EEC

Waste Framework 8

2008/98/EC 2002/96/EC

Electrical and Electronic

Equipment 5

91/689/EEC & 2002/965 Hazardous Waste 5

1999/31/EC Landfills 4

2000/76/EC

Waste Incineration 3

(26)

II. Legislation and policies –

Sources: Transportation

Transportation

No. of projects

2003/30/EC

Biofuels

5 97/68/EC &

2005/33/EC

Non-road mobile

machinery &

Sulphur in marine

fuels

2 2009/33/EC

Clean Road Transport

2

(27)

II. Legislation and policies –

Project focus

• Sixty-five projects are dealing with reduction of pollutants, either

through prevention of emissions or through pollution treatment

technologies.

• Thirty-seven projects aim to develop policy instruments and

monitoring tools in order to assess the effects air pollution has on

human health.

• Only four projects address awareness raising and communication

(28)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Implementation of directives

• Most projects focus on the implementation of directives,

particularly with regard to pollution prevention

• Some characteristic examples:

– AMELIE (LIFE05 ENV/F/000053) aims to find reliable lead-free

alternatives

– UNIZEO (LIFE10 ENV/IT000347) aims to coat urea-based nitrogen

fertiliser with zeolite, reducing air pollution from ammonia

(29)

III. Where do projects intervene – BAT

• A significant number of projects focuses on demonstrating or developing

further the best available technique (BAT)

• Most of these projects are highly innovative in technology • Some characteristic examples:

– HotOxyGlass (LIFE07 ENV/F/000179) has led to the creation of the Boussois furnace, regarded as the greenest flat glass furnace in the world

– WINTECC (LIFE06 ENV/D/000479) has developed innovative technologies for cleaner maritime transportation, through the development of a new

(30)

III. Where do projects intervene – BAT

• Other projects further the understanding of BAT

• Some characteristic examples:

–

BATsGraph (LIFE07 ENV/E/000836) – development of eTool

to help implement BAT in the printing industry

–

ZERO PLUS (LIFE05 ENV/E/000256) – management of liquid

wastes by integrating existing BAT under real-life

conditions

(31)

III. Where do projects intervene – BAT

• Other projects set new BAT • Some characteristic examples:

– VOCless pulping (LIFE06 ENV/FIN/000201) and VOCless waste water (LIFE09 ENV/FI/000568) attempt to integrate best components of current practices

• In this field the EC Reference Document on BAT is limited to just a few practices

– ZEMSHIPS (LIFE06 ENV/D/000465) – the first hydrogen-powered passenger ship – aims to redefine fully the BAT for maritime transportation

(32)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Monitoring

• A host of projects aims to monitor pollution dispersion and their

effects on human health

• Some characteristic examples:

– RESCATAME (LIFE08 ENV/E/000107) monitors pollution in real-time

using air-quality sensors

– MONALISA (LIFE05 ENV/F/000068) monitors pollen in the atmosphere

(33)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Development of policy tools

• Other projects aim to develop policy and management tools

• Some characteristic examples:

– OPERA (LIFE09 ENV/IT/000092) develops a methodology through

which local authorities can prepare, implement and monitor air quality plans that can be integrated within national and European plans

– ATMOSYS (LIFE09 ENV/BE/000409) aims to set up an advanced air

(34)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Awareness-raising

• Only four projects worked solely with increasing awareness

• However, many projects not focusing on awareness per se undertook extensive dissemination strategies

• They spend approximately 7%-10% of their budget in this

• A characteristic example is the project SMAQ (LIFE05 ENV/GR/000214): – Opening and closing event

– Production and distribution of 10,000 leaflets in five languages – A website

– Two inter-regional workshops – Six publication in journals

(35)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Awareness-raising

• There have been no LIFE INF projects related to air quality up until

2011.

• Projects focusing on awareness-raising have a much greater scope

• For example, LEADFREE (LIFE05 ENV/D/000197) set up a

demonstration and training centre which reached approximately

600 European SMEs in the fields of electronics

(36)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Acting as catalysts

• Many projects help implement local air-related programs

and policies

• 26 projects have a municipality as beneficiary or

associate – half of them in Italy

• Those projects have a combined budget over 50 million

(37)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Acting as catalysts

• Other projects help integrate local communities with European legislation • Some characteristic examples:

– ROMAIR (LIFE08 ENV/F/000485) has the explicit goal of helping Romania integrate its policies with EU legislation by implementing an air quality modelling and forecast system

• Such projects are important for the further development and integration

of regions

• They also help fine-tune the approach LIFE ENV/INF projects should follow

trying to implement European legislation at the local setting through lessons learned.

(38)

III. Where do projects intervene –

Acting as catalysts

• However, such integration is not equally-spread.

• 65% of all projects take place in just four member-states: Italy,

Spain, France, Germany

• A push for more widespread push for all Member-States to

(39)

IV. Analysis of achievements – Successes

and failures of 2005-2011 projects

Performance

No. of Projects

Successful

48 Unsuccessful

5 Successful after LIFE project

ended

2 Still open, on good track

33 Still open, at initial phase

7 Still open, with significant

delays

6

(40)

IV. Analysis of achievements – Strengths

• Technological Innovation

• Approximately one third of all air-related LIFE projects

• Many aim to develop breakthrough technology and to

set new standards

(41)

IV. Analysis of achievements – Strengths

• Integrative principles

• Facilitate cooperation among disjoined stakeholders and between

stakeholders and the general public

• Expand the understanding regarding the entire system which

surrounds a given practice, for example electric cars

• A key part is cooperation between stakeholders of different

member-states, such as in project EC4MACS (LIFE06

ENV/PREP/A/000006)

(42)

IV. Analysis of achievements – Strengths

• Demonstration value & transfer potential

• Many projects are demonstrated in real conditions

• By implementing directives in local circumstances, they provide

valuable lessons

• A host of projects are designed to be transferrable to other

(43)

V. Projects contributing to the development of new

air-related policies and legislation - Opportunities

• Complementary sub-legislation to already existing texts

– Aims mostly for local/national legislation – Is the result of technological innovation

• A characteristic example is ES-WAMAR (LIFE06 ENV/E/000044)

– No legislation on slurry treatment existent in Spain – Legislation for wastewater applied in this case as well

– The project aimed to develop further and refine existing laws

– The Environment ministry asked for assistance in understanding BAT

so as to develop the law 26/2007 on environmental liability (a transposition of Directive 2004/35/EC )

(44)

V. Projects contributing to the development of new

air-related policies and legislation (Opportunities)

• New approaches not yet covered by existing EU legislation

– Innovation is once more the driving force

• Examples include projects VOCless Waster Water (LIFE09

ENV/FI/000568) and BIOCOVER (LIFE05 ENV/DK/000141) which

develop technologies for which no relevant legislation exists

• Electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles are also addressed by five

projects

– The demonstration value of those projects can aid the development of

(45)

V. Projects contributing to the development of new

air-related policies and legislation - Opportunities

• Input for specific legislation

• The project PhotoPaq (LIFE08 ENV/F/000487) proposed

new “de-polluting” materials that are photo-catalytic and

self-cleaning as a method to fulfill the 6

th

_{EAP objectives}

• Many projects provide input for the implementation of

(46)

V. Projects contributing to the development of

new air-related policies and legislation -

Opportunities

• Contributing to the revision of specific legislation

• Project Sludge’s Wealth (LIFE09 ENV/IT/000186) proposes the

revision of Directive 86/278/EEC on sewage sludge, which is

outdated

(47)

V. Projects contributing to the development of new

air-related policies and legislation - Opportunities

• Further development of related norms and standards

• Innovative projects work to set a point of reference for

the development of future EU directives through

redefining BAT

• A good example is BATinLoko (LIFE07 ENV/P/000625)

–

Input on the textile BAT Reference Document (BREF)

–

The Portuguese Environmental Agency already suggested

(48)

V. Projects contributing to the development of new

air-related policies and legislation - Opportunities

• Dissemination of environmental legislation

• Only a few projects disseminate explicitly legislation

• An example is CLEAN AIR (LIFE11 ENV/DE/000495)

–

Aims to increase awareness regarding the Air Quality Directive

–

Capacity building within hundreds of NGOs, institutions etc.

–

Aims to reach 25 million European through concentrated media

(49)

VI. Frequently encountered barriers towards the

implementation of air quality projects

• Problems with data

• Applies for monitoring and assessment projects • Some problems encountered by projects:

– Insufficient amount of meteorological stations – Data is costly

– Historical data – needed to draw patterns – don’t exist in digital form

– Industries not obliged to give information or don’t have good monitoring equipment – Pollution from non-point sources is diffused and its effects hard to quantify

• Statistical data are used, with lower accuracy

(50)

VI. Frequently encountered barriers towards the

implementation of air quality projects

• Costs and the financial crisis

• Applies mostly for technologically innovative projects

• Greater than foreseen cost might constitute the technology industrially

inapplicable

• Certain industries (e.g. aluminium, steel, iron etc.) are facing problems

across Europe; relevant projects suffer as beneficiaries might pull out

• Projects that address external costs can suffer particularly, since they offer