European Union News - Environmnet

According to the results of an EU-funded study, car travel increases global temperatures more than an air travel for the same journey but only in the long term. Travelling by plane, on the other hand, adversely affects short-lived warming processes at high altitudes. The findings are part of the QUANTIFY ('Quantifying the climate impact of global and European transport systems') project and have been published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.

The Belgian EU presidency has intended to promote biodiversity through a series of acts and activities within the context of the UE.

The team of EU-funded scientists behind the EcoBot series (I, II, III) of robots has generated energy by feeding the machine food waste and raw materials. They have now set their sights on converting energy from urine for the same outcome.

The EU’s Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) cares for countries affected by emergencies and disasters get immediate help. After its successful actions in the past, the commission wants now to transform the MIC into a genuine operational centre with its own resources, which could be deployed immediately.

A two-woman research team from European Universities is braving chilly temperatures to fuel our understanding of how life could exist on other planets in the Solar System. Their work is part of the EUROPLANET RI (European planetology network research infrastructure) project, which is seeking to foster a culture of community through a range of networking activities for greater cooperation in the field of planetary sciences.

Halfway through its six month run, the World Expo has already attracted some 37 million visitors, and shown them what sustainable urban development is all about. Among its attractions, the Expo is presenting a vision of the future for the world's city-dwellers. Cultural and sportive expressions will continue to fill the agenda at the European Expo pavilion.

The 2009 Annual Environment Policy Review (EPR) released in August 2010 provides an overview of environmental data and trends under the priority areas of the 6th Environmental Action Programme. This year's Report shows that although important progress has been made in some environmental areas, further efforts are needed in many others, in particular concerning the loss of biodiversity.

The International Climate Change Talks have been celebrated in Bonn between 2 and 6 August 2010 as a preparatory intersession in advance of the sixth meeting for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) which will take place in Cancun, Mexico in November and December 2010. Although good progress has been made, the Commission still believes that further efforts will be needed specially regarding commitment from non-Kyoto countries.

The European Commission approved in August 2010 an aid scheme that allows to grant compensation for the damage caused in Poland by the floods of May and June 2010. The measure is in line with EU state aid rules and is available only to cover the material damages effectively caused.

Compiled by the European Commission, the aim of the 'World and European Sustainable Cities' report is to encourage a shift towards a culture of economic, social and environmental sustainability.The publication examines how continuous urbanisation can be reconciled with sustainable and inclusive growth.

According to the analysis put forward by the Commission's in-house scientific service, the Joint Research Centre (JRC), European total cereal production in 2010 should be close to the average from the last five years, despite extreme weather suffered by most EU countries this year. This forecast, published periodically by the JRC, is based on the analysis made by the Centre using an advanced crop yield forecasting system.