Trade & Society
TTIP’s regulatory maze
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), dubbed a second-generation trade deal in the wake of the moribund WTO Doha negotiations, seeks to go beyond conventional tariffs and quotas, by strengthening the international order through greater regulatory cooperation.
TTIP for dummies
In the wake of the global economic crisis and the deadlocked Doha round of international trade talks, the EU and the United States started negotiating a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, which seeks to go beyond traditional trade deals and create a genuine transatlantic single market. But the road ahead is paved with hurdles.
Europe’s rails: A bumpy ride to a single market
Two decades into the European single market, getting people or goods from one part of the European Union to another on trains remains a challenge – despite rail's potential in reducing traffic pollution and congestion. The European Commission is considering new ways to reach the end station of a common railway market.
Changing consumer behaviour to sustainability
Concerns about the sustainability of natural resources are rising, prompting policymakers and companies to encourage consumers to think green. Labelling is one way of doing this, but consumer groups advise against confronting shoppers with too much information and warn that green claims aren't always independently verified.
What goes around comes around: Recycling and climate change
Recycling has become a central part of the EU's climate change strategy by helping the bloc to tackle the nearly three billion tonnes of waste produced by Europe annually, much of which enters the atmosphere in the form of CO2 and methane emissions from landfill sites and incineration plants.
Services of General Interest in the EU
Water, energy, health, telecoms and transport are among the most widely-known examples of services that public authorities consider of general interest and subject to specific public service obligations.
Counterfeit medicines: A growing health threat
The dangers of fake medicines are due to be addressed in upcoming EU legislation but an international solution may be needed to solve a problem with global implications.
European Year of Creativity and Innovation
The European Commission has received much praise for putting innovation and creativity at the centre of attention in 2009, but it remains to be seen whether the special year can go beyond mere symbolism and deliver concrete results at a time when Europe is engulfed in a global economic recession.
EU industry and the ‘carbon leakage’ threat
Fears that tighter controls on CO2 emissions in Europe will drive factories to relocate abroad has led the EU to grant sweeping exemptions for industries deemed to be at risk. Aluminium, steel, iron and cement producers are likely to benefit from the preferential regime.
Biofuels, Trade and Sustainability
The lack of internationally-agreed criteria for sustainable biofuels production and the muddle of different government measures aimed at sheltering domestic markets are holding back growth in the global biofuels trade and could stunt EU progress towards its goal of gradually replacing oil for transport.
Funding energy efficiency in the EU
EURACTIV examines the different ways in which energy efficiency improvements are funded in Europe, whereby EU funds are only a small part of a large equation that includes market-based instruments, bank financing and private sector initiatives.Pros and cons of reviving Doha [Archived]
After a six-month total break-down in WTO negotiations on freeing up global trade, world leaders agreed, in January 2007, to revive the talks, but hopes to clinch a deal ahead of crucial US elections - are waning as hardliners refuse to soften their stance. Some fear talks may collapse completely if a breakthrough is not achieved by then.
Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights
In the face of the rising counterfeiting and piracy across Europe, the Commission is proposing a historical but controversial Directive that would - for the first time ever - force member states to adjust their penal codes and establish harmonised criminal sanctions against IPR-infringers.Implementing the EU’s new chemicals law (REACH)
Following Parliament and Council’s final agreement on REACH in late 2006, the focus has now shifted to the implementation of the EU's chemicals legislation.
Geopolitics of EU energy supply
As one of the world's largest importers of oil, gas and coal, the EU is a major player on the international energy market - However, it remains a dwarf on the political stage as member states keep the upper hand on foreign policy. With external dependence on imports forecast to grow steadily, the EU has started to integrate energy aspects into relations with third countries. EURACTIV brings an overview of relations with key regions for supply and transit.Energy Green Paper: What energy policy for Europe?
The Commission opened the debate on a future common European Energy Policy with the publication of a 'Green Paper' in March 2006. Suggestions include completing the opening of European gas and electricity markets and stepping up relations with major suppliers such as Russia and OPEC. Other key suggestions include boosting renewable energies, energy efficiency, and research on low-carbon technologies. However, EU member states have already made clear that they would not tolerate interference with national sovereignty, especially when it comes to taking sensitive political decisions such as opting for nuclear power.Biomass Action Plan
Bioenergies are derived from wood, waste and agricultural crops for transport uses (biofuels). Currently, the EU meets about 4% of its energy needs from biomass. The main objective of the Biomass Action Plan, put forward in December 2005, is to double this share by 2010. The plan would reduce oil imports by 8%, prevent greenhouse gas emissions worth 209 million tons CO2-equivalent per year and create up to 300,000 new jobs in the agricultural and forestry sector.EU Forest Action Plan
On 15 June 2006, the Commission adopted a five-year (2007-2013) action plan to enhance sustainable forestry management and improve the competitiveness of the European forestry industry.
Carbon capture and storage
Capturing carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and storing it underground is seen as a crucial technology to reduce the global warming impact of fossil fuels such as coal and gas, on which the world will continue to rely for decades.