By Gemma Lougheed - 24th January 2006
The European parliament has stepped up efforts to be eco-friendly by signing an environmental statement.
Parliament President Josep Borrell and the institution’s Secretary General Julian Priestly have committed MEPs to a green charter.
Tuesday's declaration formalises parliament commitments to improve management of facilities and to cut down on consumption resources.
As parliament is heavily involved in environmental legislation, it is as much a matter of applying the principles that it champions to its own ‘housekeeping’.
“The parliament is proud of the commitment to the goals of sustainable development and sound environmental policy that it has shown by its contribution to the law-making process in the EU,” said Borrell.
“This environmental statement is an expression of the parliament's will to ensure that its activities are consistent with best current practice in environmental management and cause a minimum of harm to the environment.”
“Eco-management offers us the opportunity to show our solidarity with these objectives in a practical way.”
Borrell said that the statement was addressed not only to MEPs and to staff but to all EU citizens.
"You have a right to expect your parliament to care about good environmental management and to keep you informed about its efforts towards improvement."
The statement aims to meet standards of the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) and will be subjected to an external audit ahead of getting the system officially registered within the context of EMAS rules and regulations.
But, since this is a voluntary scheme, environmental groups have urge Borrell to ensure the parliament follows through on the agreement.
Stefan Scheuer, policy director at the European Environmental Bureau, indicated that if Borrell takes this agreement seriously, it could be for the parliament’s own benefit.
“Take it seriously and work with high level commitment. Ensure a follow up,” said Scheuer.
“The parliament has a responsibility to be environmentally friendly, so by testing the EMAS scheme, it is an opportunity to arrive at recommendations for improvement. This we welcome.”
A number of MEPs broadly welcomed the parliament’s efforts, saying that it can only be a good thing.
“If Borrell is taking steps towards cleaning up the environment, then I am very, very pleased,” said Alyn Smith, from the Green/EFA Group.
The parliament currently employs around 5000 civil servants in its three workplaces in Brussels, Strasbourg and Luxembourg.
It occupies close to one million square metres of office space and uses a whopping 800 tonnes of paper each year; on top of that, its annual electricity bill comes to around €6m.
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