Establishment of a Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE)

Establishment of a Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE)

Key points

  • The LIFE Programme is a successful EU programme which, in conjunction with other funds and initiatives, has produced very positive results over the last 20 years. It should therefore be maintained and strengthened to ensure that protection of the climate and environment in the European Union can be taken forward strategically and coherently.
  • The budget increase proposed for the LIFE Programme (2014-2020) is a positive sign, although much still needs to be done to include the environment effectively in European policies. The EESC calls on the Member States, who are embroiled in a serious economic crisis, to give firm support for investment in the climate and environment in order to mitigate their effects.
  • Establishing a Climate Action sub-programme may create a positive instrument to raise the profile of those initiatives aimed at adapting and mitigating climate change. For its part, the Environment sub-programme must continue to help protect biodiversity and to finance the Natura 2000 network as a priority, but without reducing the contribution from other funds such as those making up the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).
  • Launching a new kind of large-scale project, the "Integrated Projects", must be achieved by guaranteeing the involvement of NGOs and SMEs, ensuring that "traditional projects" are continued and improving coordination between national and EU bodies. In this respect, the EESC suggests that the Commission should include in the proposal for a regulation a clear budgetary allocation for both types of project, stipulate which criteria are to be used for establishing the geographical distribution of the integrated projects and make clear how the multi-annual programmes are to be drawn up without impairing the programme's flexibility.
  • The EESC is in favour of projects being distributed on the basis of merit rather than geographical criteria. Nevertheless, it acknowledges that many countries have a very limited involvement in the LIFE Programme because they are either lacking in experience or the necessary means to participate actively. It is therefore essential for the Commission to give them easier accesses by providing more advice and through better institutional coordination.
  • Increasing the level of co-financing for traditional and integrated projects can under no circumstances justify VAT and staff costs no longer being considered as eligible costs. Not including these costs would essentially harm small civil society organisations whose contribution is very valuable but whose involvement could be limited or non-existent.
  • The introduction of lump-sum payments is a good simplification measure. The EESC feels that the Commission should go further by improving advisory services, simplifying financial forms and introducing a prior assessment stage for traditional projects.
  • The EESC deems it essential to retain the Community and European added value aspects of the LIFE Programme. In this respect, the Commission should make clear in advance which measures are to be adopted via delegated acts, the role of the Member States in the LIFE Committee and the new powers of the Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation.
  • Despite the LIFE Programme's notable success, the European Commission must make further efforts to increase awareness of the Programme and the active involvement of civil society organisations. In this respect, it is essential for projects to be better publicised and more transparent as regards their selection and for people to be made more aware of the importance of an EU instrument such as the LIFE Programme and the added value it can bring to society.