Environmental policies, bases for territorial planning. An approximation to the study of the environmental policies of the European Union. Challenges and future perspectives

This work is aimed at analysing the functioning of the environmental policies of the European Union in order to address the use of these policies as well as the instruments to implement them, observing their efficacy to protect and preserve the environment in general and their particular social and human implications. First we will analyse international environmental policy, focusing on its consolidation through the creation of international organizations and treaties and on its theoretical background. Then, we will move forward to the development of environmental policy within the European Union, focusing on the functioning of this policy emphasizing its legal foundations on European Treaties. For this purpose we will analyse the principle of integration as well as the effectiveness of implementation regarding transposition of European law into national policy. We will also focus on the current situation of environmental policy within the Union going through the main innovations of the recent European Green Deal. Finally, some case studies will show us the reality of the European environmental policy and some of the challenges it will have to overcome in the near future. Through this work we will approach the repercussions the development of environmental policy has in international relations, paying special attention to its implications at supranational, national and regional scope within the European Union.

IMPLEMENTING EUROPEAN ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND TURKEY: THE COST AND EXPENDITURES OF THE POLICY COMPLIANCE

This paper examines the European environmental policy and the tools that the European Union (EU) uses for the aim of protecting the environment. Environmental policy is of crucial importance indeed as it has direct impact on human’s health, on the quality of environment, on the well-being of all living creatures and species and on the preservation of our natural resources around the world. The EU is quite active in environmental protection policy making and the scope of her environmental policy expanded with time, including nowadays many aspects such as air, water and soil pollution, waste management, protection of the environment, industrial pollution, chemicals, climate change and noise pollution. The methodology of the study consists of the review and analysis of primary and secondary sources regarding EU legislation on European environmental policy. The requirements of environmental policy are exposed and evaluated at the European level and other international engagements at the global level such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement are also evaluated in our paper. European statistics and reports are evaluated to provide a good understanding and assessment of the relation between governments and corporations’ expenditures and the protection of environment in EU member states and in Turkey. Our paper also includes the implementation of the European environmental policy in Turkey, therefore Turkish of􀏐icial policy alignment and compliance is explained with data related to EU funded projects implemented by Turkish institutions. Regarding the relation between expenditures and environment, our 􀏐indings indicate a reverse causality effect; the quality of the environment determines the level of public expenditures indeed, and not vice-versa. As analyzed in our paper, governments and corporations’ investments related to environmental protection are quite low and they are in decline, this share needs to be increased both at the EU level and in Turkey. Key Words: European Union Environmental Policy, Climate Change, Kyoto Protocol, Paris Agreement, Government Expenditures on Environmental Policy.

Nature-Based Solutions and Sustainable Urban Planning in the European Environmental Policy Framework: Analysis of the State of the Art and Recommendations for Future Development

Sustainable urban planning (SUP) is crucial in the development of sustainable cities, as also underlined by the New Urban Agenda. Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly being recognized for their potential to offer multiple benefits that are necessary in order to cope with present and future urban challenges. The European policy framework, including the recently released European Green Deal, could strongly boost the role and recognition of NBS and SUP as drivers of sustainable and inclusive urban transition. Through a content analysis of current environmental European policies, strategies and agreements, this paper provides (i) an overview of the state of the art of the environmental European policy framework and the recognized role of NBS and SUP in reaching defined objectives, and (ii) insights on where NBS and SUP could play a larger role within this framework. On this basis, the paper identifies gaps and develops recommendations for a better integration of such concepts into the current framework.

White paper on the alignment and interoperability between the Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo) and EU infrastructures - The case of the European Environment Agency (EEA)

The Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo) Research Infrastructure (RI) is presently in its preparatory phase. DiSSCo is developing a new distributed RI to operate as a one-stop-shop for the envisaged European Natural Science Collection (NSC) and all its derived information. Through mass digitisation, DiSSCo will transform the fragmented landscape of NSCs, including an estimated 1.5 billion specimens, into an integrated knowledge base that will provide interconnected evidence of the natural world. Data derived from European NSCs underpin countless discoveries and innovations, including tens of thousands of scholarly publications and official reports annually (supporting legislative and regulatory processes on sustainability, environmental change, land use, societal infrastructure, health, food, security, etc.); base-line biodiversity data; inventions and products essential to bio-economy; databases, maps and descriptions of scientific observations; educational material for students; and instructive and informative resources for the public. To expand the user community, DiSSCo will strengthen capacity building across Europe for maximum engagement of stakeholders in the biodiversity-related field and beyond, including industry and the private sector, but also policy-driving entities. Hence, it is opportune to reach out to relevant stakeholders in the European environmental policy domain represented by the European Environment Agency (EEA). The EEA aims to support sustainable development by helping to achieve significant and measurable improvement in Europe's environment, through the provision of timely, targeted, relevant and reliable information to policy-making agents and the public. The EEA provides information through the European Environment Information and Observation System (Eionet). The aim of this white paper is to open the discussion between DiSSCo and the EEA and identify the common service interests that are relevant for the European environmental policy domain. The first section describes the significance of (digital) Natural Science Collections (NHCs). Section two describes the DiSSCo programme with all DiSSCo aligned projects. Section three provides background information on the EEA and the biodiversity infrastructures that are developed and maintained by the EEA. The fourth section illustrates a number of use cases where the DiSSCo consortium sees opportunities for interaction between the DiSSCo RI and the Eionet portal of the EEA. Opening the discussion with the EEA in this phase of maturity of DiSSCo will ensure that the infrastructural design of DiSSCo and the development of e-Services accommodate the present and future needs of the EEA and assure data interoperability between the two infrastructures. The aim of this white paper is to present benefits from identifying the common service interests of DiSSCo and the EEA. A brief introduction to natural science collections as well as the two actors is given to facilitate the understanding of the needs and possibilities in the alignment of DiSSCo with the EEA.

ENVIRONMENTAL CHOICES VS. COVID-19 PANDEMIC FEAR – PLASTIC GOVERNANCE RE-ASSESSMENT

Alarming plastic production growth worldwide reinforces the public debate about the prevailing environmental crisis, whereby single-use-plastic (SUP) items are considered as by far the most harmful to the environment and public health. Accordingly, European environmental policy aims at eliminating SUP. Recently, we presented a model of plastic governance that derives from a circular economy approach identifying and taking into consideration perspectives of different actors in the plastic governance, such as producers, wholesalers, shop keepers, consumers, citizen scientists, and academia. Our results illustrate that the vast majority of stakeholders cared for the natural environment and understood the need to phase out SUP from the global economy. We proposed that a knowledge brokerage, undertaken by scientists via means of citizen science, as the most effective method to implement elimination policy, as it provides stakeholders with knowledge on why and how to handle SUP issues. However, at the time of the global COVID-19 pandemic, a plastic governance model required a re-assessment. The perceived role of SUP has changed, as it reflects the health emergency. Namely, due to the health safety reasons stakeholders and consumers are requesting even more SUP than previously. Following up on our data gathered prior to the pandemic, we suggest that under the new circumstances health concerns outweigh the environmental concerns being determined by a shift in the value hierarchization. The paper discusses preliminary results.