Working Report, 23/2006 – Strengthening Environmental Integration in the EU – 5 Impact Assessment as generic tool for integration?

Strengthening Environmental Integration in the EU

5 Impact Assessment as generic tool for integration?

5.1 Background
5.2 What is an Impact Assessment?
5.3 Progress so far with using Impact Assessment
5.4 Scope for IAs to advance environmental integration

5.1 Background

Two processes can be seen as to have influenced the Commission’s decision in 2002 to publish a Communication on Impact Assessment^[25], which introduced a new procedure. These were: the Gothenburg Summit in 2001, demanding a sustainability impact assessment as part of the SDS, and the so-called ‘better regulation’ exercise with the purpose of producing legislation that is more effective and easier to read and understand. This led to the introduction of a new system seeking to integrate all existing internal procedures for impact assessment.

The main objective of the Impact Assessment (IA) procedure is ‘to improve the quality and coherence of the policy development process’ by systematically assessing the likely positive and negative impacts of the proposals adopted by the Commission. The potential trade-offs between competing objectives, notably economic, social and environmental, are to be taken into account, including the objectives of the EU Sustainable Development Strategy. Finally, the procedure is meant to increase transparency, the participation of stakeholders and the cooperation between EU institutions. An Inter-Institutional Agreement on Better Regulation has subsequently been agreed between the Parliament, Council and Commission, which commits all institutions to using impact assessments.

The overall responsibility for overseeing the IA system lies with the Secretariat-General of the Commission, but the impact assessments themselves are undertaken by the responsible directorates-general. The Commission’s Work Programme for 2004 (listed in Annex I.I) gives further details on the individual DGs responsible for each of the IAs.

5.2 What is an Impact Assessment?

The IA process has two stages:

Firstly, a screening exercise based on a short preliminary assessment of all proposals presented in the context of the Annual Policy Strategy or the Work Programme of the Commission; and
Secondly, an extended impact assessment of selected proposals.

The Preliminary Impact Assessment is a short statement on the objective of the proposal, the policy options available, and an assessment on whether an extended impact assessment is needed.

An Extended Impact Assessment is undertaken if two criteria apply:

It is a proposal with significant social, environmental or economic impacts, and
The proposal forms part of the priority initiatives presented in the Commission’s planning process (in the Annual Policy Strategy, which is agreed by the Commission each February for the following year and/or the Work Programme).

Proposals subject to IA can be both regulatory proposals (directives, regulations) as well as non-regulatory proposals (white papers, expenditure programmes, negotiating guidelines etc).

5.3 Progress so far with using Impact Assessment

In December 2003, IEEP was commissioned by DEFRA (Europe Environment Division) to produce a report reviewing the extent to which considerations of sustainable development have in practice been incorporated into the first ‘wave’ of impact assessments on proposals and initiatives in the Commission’s work programme for 2003.

Of the 580 proposals listed in the Commission’s 2003 work programme, 43 were formally identified as requiring extended assessment. However, those not selected included several with significant effects on aspects of sustainable development. Of the 43 selected proposals, 21 extended assessments had been completed by April 2004. This shortfall reflected delays in the publication of proposals, or in some cases the withdrawal of a proposal altogether. The criteria for the selection of proposals for extended IAs have been unclear, and indeed the system as a whole has not been transparent, with many of the assessments not readily available to the public. In relation to the consideration of impacts, generally there has been a focus on the short-term economic costs of proposed measures, rather than their potential long term environmental and social benefits. This tendency could be reinforced, since both the Competitiveness Council and the Spring 2004 European Council have called for an enhanced competitiveness dimension of the IA process (in order to reduce the administrative burden on business by removing ‘unnecessary’ regulation).

5.4 Scope for IAs to advance environmental integration

The Commission’s IA system is intended to produce more coherent policy proposals which take account of all potential economic, social and environmental impacts - intended and unintended - and identify available synergies between otherwise competing priorities. In principle, therefore, it should be a useful vehicle for advancing environmental integration – although there is no presumption that environmental objectives will be given priority over economic and social ones. However, in practice the implementation of the IA system so far has tended to downplay environmental considerations, for a variety of reasons. Most Commission directorates-generals are unaccustomed to considering options or assessing impacts, which lie beyond their immediate sphere of competence, and considerable effort and resources need to be devoted to training and support in this area. The availability of resources, relevant data and analysis also needs to be reinforced. These and other issues of quality control are currently being addressed by a Commission Task Force chaired by the Secretariat-General, which is reviewing the content and application of the Commission’s Guidelines on impact assessment. The first report of the Task Force is expected in July. Unless the IA system is considerably strengthened, it should not be relied upon as a principal vehicle for advancing integration.

More specifically, there seems to have been limited scope so far for impact assessments to advance IPP principles - but this partly reflects the nature of the proposals that have been subject to assessment. In principle, however, impact assessments should be a useful instrument to ensure that life cycle issues have been taken into account in the development of relevant proposals.

Fodnoter

^[25] COM (2002) 276