Environment

The protection of the environment and the rational management of resources and waste are priorities within European and national policy. At European level, the first sustainable development strategy dates from 2001 (the Gothenburg Strategy, which completed the Lisbon Strategy). For the 2021-2030 period, the EU is based on the eighth version of the “environment action programme,” which includes three objectives: the preservation of “natural capital”; transforming the EU into a low-carbon, resource-efficient economy; and protecting human health and well-being.

The other major objective defined by the European Commission is the implementation of the Green Deal. The European Commission has established the Green Deal for Europe to transform the Union into a modern, environmentally friendly economy. 

The environment is subject to increasingly stringent European regulations. The Seventh Environmental Action Programme (EAP), which came into force in January 2014, includes several themes that constitute challenges for cross-border sustainable development, such as: the protection of natural areas, both terrestrial and marine, low-carbon economic cooperation, the sharing of knowledge and investment in research and innovation, and the integration of environmental concerns into sectoral policies (agriculture, fisheries, energy, and transport).