News

European chemicals reform

14 Oct 2003

Debate on a major overhaul of the European Unions regulatory system for chemicals the so-called REACH system continues to rage as the European Commission prepares to adopt its proposals. In the European Parliament, a series of seminars with all major stakeholders begins this week with a political evaluation of the forthcoming proposals.

New nature database launched

10 Oct 2003

Expanded information on selected species, habitats and sites of importance for protecting Europe's biodiversity is now available through the new European Nature Information System (EUNIS).

Climate change in the spotlight

30 Sep 2003

Indicator in focus

30 Sep 2003

Greenhouse gas emissions in 10 EU accession countries compared with Kyoto target for 200812 (excluding fluorinated gases and land-use change and forestry)

EEA Evaluation

30 Sep 2003

Forest fires in Southern Europe

02 Sep 2003

An increase over recent years in the frequency and extent of forest fires in the Mediterranean region, has had a significant impact on soil erosion. Frequently repeated forest fires contribute to the desertification of marginal lands. EEA's report "Europe's environment - The Third Assessment" provides an overview of the effects of wildfire on the environment, in particular soil erosion.

Heatwave sparks smog warnings through Europe

19 Aug 2003

Concentrations of damaging ground-level ozone increase when summer sunshine ignites polluting emissions from transport and industry.

Algal bloom in coastal waters

11 Aug 2003

The hot weather affecting much of Europe is encouraging the formation of coloured 'blooms' of algae in several coastal areas, which can make bathing unpleasant and pose a range of problems for coastal ecosystems.

Heatwaves, floods and droughts in Europe

07 Aug 2003

Currently much of Europe is drying up in a heatwave, but one year ago the problem was too much rain as parts of central Europe suffered serious flooding.

Europe's water: An indicator-based assessment - Summary

17 Jun 2003

This summary presents the main findings and key messages from the upcoming report Europe's water - an indicator-based assessment, which assesses the quality and quantity of Europe's water resources. The report seeks to answer a number of questions formulated to assess whether the broad objectives and targets of EU water policy are being achieved and to indicate where policy gaps may occur.