September 2005
OPPORTUNITIES FOR DIALOGUE
Road safety – FIVA amendment adopted by European Parliament
Further to the Report in the June EU Issues update, I am again pleased to report that the Transport Committee’s amendment to the European Commission’s Road Safety programme (proposed by Ari Vatanen) was adopted by the whole European Parliament on 29 September. The amendment reads:
" [The European Parliament] Is keen to preserve the cultural heritage represented by historic vehicles; therefore urges that planned legislation should take into consideration any unintentional but potentially negative effects on the use - and thus also the preservation - of historic vehicles;"
This was a proactive FIVA initiative, originally proposed by Andrew Burt in a meeting in Brussels with Ari Vatanen (the Transport Committee rapporteur for the issue) in late 2003. At the appropriate times, FIVA members were asked to lobby their MEPs who sit on the Transport Committee, action which ensured that the amendment was proposed earlier this year and adopted in June. Then, before this Plenary vote last week, some FIVA members were again asked to lobby a few select MEPs (those responsible in each major political group for determining how all the MEPs in each group vote on issues during Plenary sessions). Again, FIVA received positive reactions to the lobbying and as a result those MEPs ensured that there members supported the paragraph and accordingly, the amendment was adopted. FIVA now knows that it has great support within the EP and can use the paragraph to support any case in any future lobbying - specifically if either the Commission or Council try (for whatever reason) ignore our representations.
European Commission proposes a new clean air strategy
On 21 September, the European Commission proposed a comprehensive 15-year programme to improve EU air quality. The central aim of the Clean Air for Europe’s (Café) programme is to set a series of targets for reducing key pollutant emissions between 2000 and 2020. The proposal is for sulphur dioxide to be cut by 82%, nitrogen oxides by 60%, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by 51%, ammonia by 27% and ultra-fine particulates (PM2.5) by 59%. To do so, the Commission has issued a first piece of draft legislation, consolidating existing EU laws on air quality standards and introducing the first limits on PM2.5. It also discusses future measures for political debate.
It is the existing air quality/emission regulations, dating from 1999, which have caused problems for FIVA members in some member states, specifically Italy, where local authorities have banned the use of vehicles without catalytic converters – or older vehicles – from towns and regions on specific days in order to ensure that the air quality levels set by the regulations are met. FIVA met with officials of European Commission’s DG Environment last year to ascertain whether there was any action the Commission could take to ensure that the use of historic vehicles is not impacted by national implementation of the Regulations. They answered that there was little they could do and that certainly there was no action that could be taken if FIVA could not provide facts and figures on the numbers of historic vehicles in Europe, miles driven by them, emissions produced by them etc. Since then FIVA Legislation Commission has commissioned a study to provide these facts and figures which is expected to be ready by July 2006.
FIVA’s most recent dialogue with the European Commission on this matter – in anticipation of these new proposals – was somewhat more positive. One of the Commission officials responsible for the proposals made clear again that the Commission will never be able to legally include in one of these Directives a provision stating that Member States should not impact on the use of historic vehicles when implementing the Directives. However, he did say that during the regular workshops which the Commission holds with Member States to discuss the implementation of the Directives, it does give the Member States guidance as to which actions are likely to have the greatest impact in improving air quality. Conversely, the Commission can advise Member States to avoid certain measures if evidence has shown that such action does little to improve air quality. Hopefully, the FIVA research will show that historic vehicle’s contribution to pollution is minimal. Therefore, when the research is complete, we will share the information with the European Commission with the objective that they may then tell Member States to avoid impacting historic vehicles when implementing the EU air quality Directives. In parallel, FIVA members should also lobby at the local level in order to ensure that vehicle use bans do not impact historic vehicle use.
This issue is important as vehicle bans are increasingly seen to be an easy way to ensure that the Directives’ air quality targets are met. It will become more important still as one of the new proposals is calling for the first ever EU-level limits on ambient concentrations of ultra-fine particles under 2.5 microns wide. The proposal states that by 2010 all member states will have to comply with a "concentration cap" of 25 micrograms per cubic metre (ug/m3). This is derived from an existing EU limit on particles up to ten microns (PM10) of 40ug/m3 by the same date. Member states meeting the PM10 target should automatically meet the PM2.5 mark because the smaller fraction is also lighter. Nevertheless, the Commission has also proposed giving states leeway to exceed the cap by up to 20% when the directive enters force, declining in steps to 0% in 2015. In the second stage member states will have to cut PM2.5 concentrations by 20% by 2020, compared with the average during 2008-2010. Five years after the directive's adoption the Commission will propose further targets differentiated by member state.
Environment groups have however, criticised the proposal on the grounds that the proposed target PM 2.5 target will not be fully legally binding as the Commission has confirmed that the target will have to be met "where possible". However, governments will still have to show they have taken all reasonable measures to reduce pollution if they want to avoid legal action.
The agricultural sector is intended to bear the brunt of change proposed by these new initiatives by requiring farmers to make a to cut emissions on the grounds that the industry and the transport sectors have been required to make the most effort over the past 30 years. Cafe could cost agriculture about €2.5bn, of which about €1bn in costs are already in progress through the recent reform of the EU's common agricultural policy. The Commission estimates costs of around€2.5bn for agriculture, €2bn for transport, €1bn for large and small combustion plants, €1bn for households, and around €600m for other industrial activities.
In the transport sector the Commission is to propose new "Euro V" air quality standards by the end of the year. It will "examine the scope" for reducing VOC emissions from petrol stations and will "further encourage shifts towards less polluting modes of transport".
Passenger car taxation – little action under the UK Presidency
FIVA has discussed its views on the Commission proposal on passenger car taxation (See July EU issues update) with the UK Presidency of the Council – and submitted the comments which were originally made to the European Commission in its consultation in 2003. In preparation for future debate in the Council, FIVA members will be asked to make similar representations to their relevant ministries to ensure that FIVA’s concerns are fully understood by the relevant decision makers. Discussions at Council level are not anticipated until next year as the UK has confirmed that it does not intend to make any progress on the dossier during its Presidency which runs to the end of the year.
In a parallel development, the Portuguese government has approved linking vehicle taxes to carbon dioxide emissions as part of its 2006 budget. In a statement, it said the initiative, which enters force next July, "marks the beginning of a progressive reform to make vehicle taxation work to combat pollution". The finance ministry said there would probably be a 10% reduction for cleaner vehicles.
INFORMATION
Proposed car emission standards – industry and environmental groups are critical
The EU car industry has criticised the European Commission draft recommendation on future emission standards for passenger cars. The European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) has said that the majority of draft Euro V criteria (see July EU issues update and above) will place too great a burden on car manufacturers. ACEA has said that meeting the proposed 200mg/km level for NOx for diesel vehicles would be possible, but a "significant task" and has said that existing technology could not bring NOx emissions below 200mg/km. ACEA also criticises the Commission's proposal to remove a loophole which has allowed large sports cars (SUVs) to escape meeting Euro V standards. ACEA wants cars seating seven or more people to be exempt because they offer "an environmentally attractive alternative to the use of two 'normal' passenger cars".
In parallel, Transport and Environment, the environmental lobby group has said that the proposed Euro V emission standards for passenger cars should be stricter. The NGO says stricter EU emission limits for particulates (PM), nitrate oxides (NOx) and hydrocarbons (HC) are "technically, economically and politically" possible. It wants NOx emissions from diesel cars to be limited to 75mg per kilometre (mg/km) rather than 200mg/km as proposed in a consultation paper by the European Commission in July. This would make exhaust after treatment necessary - something avoided by the Commission proposal - but which T&E claims to be technically feasible. It also wants diesel PM emissions to be capped at 2mg per kilometre (mg/km), rather than 5mg/km and emissions of NOx and HC emissions from petrol cars to be brought down to 20mg/km and 25mg/km respectively, rather than 60mg/km and 75mg/km.
MEP tables tougher road toll recommendation
The European Parliament Transport Committee will consider the Council Common Position on 'Eurovignette' road toll rules this week. The Rapporteur Corien Wortmann-Kool, said that she wants amendments to the Council text – specifically that the road tolls apply to vehicles of at least 3.5 tonnes - as originally suggested by the Commission – and as opposed to the 12-tonne threshold currently in force and supported by the Member States. She has also proposed that:
? from 2010 all vehicle charges should be based on EU emission norms –the Common Position only offers it as a possibility, and did not allow for emissions of particulates (PM10) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) to be taken into account;
? the EP reintroduces from its first reading a clause allowing member states to recoup external environmental costs from toll charging (Member States agreed that only infrastructure costs should be covered);
? the Commission to produce, within three years of the directive's transposition, guidance on how to assess external environmental, health and congestion-related costs of freight transport; and:
? tolls should apply to all road in the trans-European network (TEN), and makes more explicit the possibility to also introduce tolls on "any road which is in direct competition" with TEN roads.Germany proposes car industry climate fund
In a letter to German automotive industry association, VDA, German environment minister Jürgen Trittin urged all European manufacturers to voluntarily cut average new car CO2 emissions to 120 grams per kilometre (g/km). The letter went on to say that if they do not meet the target, they should pay the difference in equivalent carbon credits into the Kyoto protocol's clean development mechanism, he said.
Car PAH emissions
The European oil industry research body Concawe has claimed that advanced petrol and diesel vehicles produce such low levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that PAH emissions from road transport should soon no longer be issue. So while older diesel vehicles may emit significant levels of PAH, the organisation is hopeful that the European Commission will not propose to restrict further polyaromatic content in fuel as a way to limit PAH emissions.
- 00 -
The FIVA Legislation Commission members are: Geoff Smith, (Chairman); Winfried Kallinger; Svend Aage Tholstrup; Adalberto Gueli; David Davis, Tiddo Bresters, Horst Bruning, Patrick Rollet, and CarlaFiocchi (Secretariat)