EEA Nwwsletter
Issue no. 2015/2, 15 June 2015
pict Your quarterly update on Europe's environment
pict Editorial | Interview | Indicators & data | EEA news | In the spotlight | Upcoming events
 

Editorial

 
 

Nature policy works when implemented well

Our natural environment is a key component of our health and wealth. However, our recent assessments show that the majority of habitats and species in Europe have an unfavourable conservation status despite significant improvements for many species in recent years.

By Hans Bruyninckx, Executive Director

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  Interview  

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Land and soil losing ground to human activities

'Land and soil are finite, non-renewable resources, which continue to degrade, affecting their ability to function and deliver services. Food growing, biomass and biofuel production, carbon storage, the hosting of soil biodiversity, the filtering of water and cycling of nutrients, and the provision of raw materials are under increasing pressure. The natural and archaeological heritage of soil is also being jeopardised', says Geetrui Louwagie.

Interview with Geertrui Louwagie on the issues facing land and soil and what is being done to tackle them.

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  Indicators & data updates  

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Air quality & pollution: EEA indicator on emissions of main air pollutants; data set from air quality e-reporting; dataset covering 2007-2013 reported under E-PRTR; National Emissions Ceilings Directive Inventory data and its data viewer.

 

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Biodiversity: EEA indicators on sites designated under the EU Birds and Habitats Directives and ecological footprint of EU countries; data on Natura 2000 network of protected sites; data on European Red Lists.

 

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Climate change: EEA indicator on soil moisture; EU-ETS data reported under EU Transactions Log; data on CO2 emissions from vans and passenger cars; and aggregated data on Flourinated greenhouse gases.

 

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Marine: Bathing water data for 2014 and interactive map; marine litter data and top litter items (collected through Marine LitterWatch app). 

 

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Population: Indicator on global and European population change

 

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Waste water: Interactive map on urban waste water treatment.

 
 
  EEA news  

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Many European countries' air pollutant emissions above legal limits

Air pollutant emissions in the EU continue to exceed legal limits, according to a report from the European Environment Agency published today. Preliminary data for 2013 shows that ten EU Member States exceeded one or more of their emission ceilings for key pollutants.
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How vulnerable are cities to climate change?

The European Environment Agency published today a series of interactive maps, illustrating various climate threats European cities face as well as cities’ capacity to respond to these threats. This new ‘map book’ provides background information and allows users to view the maps, selecting different parameters.
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Green Week: stakeholders put nature in the spotlight

Stakeholders from across Europe are coming together at Green Week to discuss biodiversity and ecosystem services in Europe. The European Environment Agency will present its latest findings, recently published in its reports 'State of nature in the EU' and 'The European Environment – state and outlook 2015'. To contribute to the knowledge base, the EEA released today a new technical report on mapping and assessment of ecosystems.
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Europeans continue enjoying high-quality bathing waters

Ninety-five per cent of the monitored bathing sites in the European Union met minimum standards for water quality in 2014, according the report published by the European Environment Agency. Water quality was excellent at 83 % of the sites, an increase of almost 1 percentage point compared to 2013.
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State of nature in the EU: biodiversity still being eroded, but some local improvements observed

The majority of habitats and species in Europe have an unfavourable conservation status despite significant improvements for many species in recent years, according to a new technical report published by the European Environment Agency today. The report presents the most comprehensive European overview on the conservation status and trends of the habitats and species covered by the European Union’s two nature directives. 
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New vans sold in Europe are increasingly more fuel-efficient

The average van sold in the European Union in 2014 was around 2.4% more fuel-efficient than those sold in 2013, according to preliminary data from the European Environment Agency (EEA). Fuel efficiency has continued to improve and new vans now emit almost 6 grams of CO2/km below the 2017 target.
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Sharing knowledge on climate change adaptation

For all stakeholders, e.g. policymakers, cities, businesses, relevant and timely information is essential for developing and implementing strategies and measures to adapt to climate change. A new report by the European Environment Agency provides an overview of existing information platforms across European countries.
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Ozone pollution in Europe: fewer alert days but concentrations still high

Air pollution by ground-level ozone continued to affect many countries across Europe during summer 2014, according to a new briefing published by the European Environment Agency (EEA). Almost all reporting countries exceeded at least once the long-term objective set by EU legislation, while the stricter alert threshold was exceeded only on four occasions.
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Building a shared environmental information system with Eastern neighbours

The European Union's eastern neighbours have achieved progress in developing systems for collecting environmental information, according to a recently published analysis. However, they need to strengthen further their capacities to be able to produce regular, policy-relevant and indicator-based state of the environment reports.
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New cars’ CO2 emissions well below Europe’s 2015 target

New cars sold in 2014 emit on average 2.6 % less CO2 than those sold in 2013 and almost 7 grammes of CO2/km below the 2015 target, according to provisional data published today by the European Environment Agency.
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  In the spotlight  

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Picture2050 - living well, within the limits of our planet

What comes to your mind when you think of nature, economy and well-being? The European Environment Agency invites you to share your views and observations of Europe’s environment in its new photography competition Picture2050.

Send in your submissions by 15 August 2015. 

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  Upcoming events  

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7-10 July 2015 - Our common future under climate change, Paris, France

Building on the findings of the IPCC's 5th assessment report, the scientific conference will present updated knowledge and address key issues concerning climate change in the broader context of global change. The EEA will participate in the conference and present its findings.
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SOER 2015 events across Europe

A series of events will be held in coming months in EEA countries to present the findings of SOER 2015. For more information on these events, read more.

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