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Regional Policy and Environment
REGIONAL & URBAN DEVELOPMENT POLICY
EU Cohesion Policy's Role in Sustainable Growth
The EU Cohesion Policy promotes sustainable growth by supporting various environmental initiatives. Key areas of focus include:
- Water and Waste Management: Significant investments are made in infrastructure for wastewater treatment, waste management, and recycling to address basic needs in Member States.
- Clean Technologies: The policy supports the development and implementation of environmentally-friendly and innovative clean technologies.
- Protection of Natural Assets: Investments target the protection of air quality, biodiversity, and natural habitats, aligning with EU environmental policies.
Specific Investments and Initiatives
- Water Management:
- Budget Allocation: Approximately EUR 14 billion is allocated to water management.
- Infrastructure Projects: Funds are used to construct or upgrade wastewater treatment plants, sewerage networks, and sewage sludge management systems.
- Water Security: Investments also ensure the availability and security of drinking water services, as well as water conservation and reuse initiatives.
- Waste Management:
- Budget Allocation: More than EUR 4 billion is dedicated to improving waste management.
- Infrastructure Development: Focuses on basic waste treatment infrastructure, adhering to the waste hierarchy and supporting circular economy objectives.
- Innovation Support: Cohesion Policy invests in innovation and supports SMEs to achieve circular economy goals.
- Biodiversity and Nature Conservation:
- Policy Implementation: Supports the EU's biodiversity policies, particularly the Habitats and Birds Directives, and strengthens the Natura 2000 network of protected areas.
- Green Infrastructure: Emphasizes green infrastructure, such as flood plains, green walls, and roofs, especially in urban areas.
- Eco-Tourism and Urban Environment:
- Heritage Conservation: Contributes to eco-tourism by conserving and promoting natural and cultural heritage.
- Urban Revitalization: Efforts to improve urban environments include revitalizing cities, regenerating brownfield sites, reducing air pollution, and promoting noise-reduction measures.
- Resource-Efficient Economy: Supports the industrial transition towards a resource-efficient economy, promoting green growth and eco-innovation.
Impact and Outcomes
- Waste Investments: The recycling rate has increased in almost all EU13 Member States due to Cohesion Policy investments.
- Water Projects: Improved drinking water supply for at least 4 million EU citizens and enhanced wastewater treatment for over 7 million EU citizens.
- Evaluation Results: The ex-post evaluation of water and waste investments during 2007-2013 highlighted significant contributions towards EU water and waste targets in many Member States.
The EU Cohesion Policy's integrated approach to funding and programming ensures coordinated and comprehensive actions to address environmental challenges, fostering sustainable economic growth and new job opportunities across the EU.