European Environment Agency

European Environment Agency
Agency overview
Formed 30 October 1993 (1993-10-30)
Jurisdiction European Union
Headquarters Copenhagen, Denmark
55°40′52″N 12°35′12″E / 55.681208°N 12.586609°E / 55.681208; 12.586609Coordinates: 55°40′52″N 12°35′12″E / 55.681208°N 12.586609°E / 55.681208; 12.586609
Agency executives
  • Hans Bruyninckx, Executive Director
  • Elisabeth Freytag-Rigler, Chairwoman of Management Board
Key document
Website www.eea.europa.eu
European Environment Agency Building in Copenhagen at winter

The European Environment Agency (EEA) is the agency of the European Union (EU) that provides independent information on the environment, thereby helping those involved in developing, adopting, implementing and evaluating environmental policy, as well as informing the general public. The agency is governed by a management board composed of representatives of the governments of its 33 member states, a European Commission representative and two scientists appointed by the European Parliament, assisted by a committee of scientists.

The EEA was established by the European Economic Community (EEC) Regulation 1210/1990 (amended by EEC Regulation 933/1999 and EC Regulation 401/2009) and became operational in 1994. It is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The current Executive Director of the agency is Professor Hans Bruyninckx, who has been appointed for a five-year term. He is the successor of Professor Jacqueline McGlade.

The member states of the union are members; however the Council Regulation establishing it provided that other states may become members of it by means of agreements concluded between them and the EU.

It was the first EU body to open its membership to the 13 candidate countries (pre-2004 enlargement).

The EEA has 33 member countries and six cooperating countries. The European environment information and observation network (Eionet) is a partnership network of the EEA and the countries. The EEA is responsible for developing the network and coordinating its activities. To do so, the EEA works closely together with national focal points, typically national environment agencies or environment ministries. They are responsible for coordinating national networks involving many institutions (about 350 in all).

The 33 member countries include the 28 European Union Member States together with Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey.

The six Balkans countries are cooperating countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia as well as Kosovo under the UN Security Council Resolution 1244/99. These cooperation activities are integrated into Eionet and are supported by the European Union under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance.

The EEA is an active member of the EPA Network.[1]

Member countries

The 33 member countries include the 28 European Union member states together with Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey. The six Western Balkan countries are cooperating countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia as well as Kosovo under the UN Security Council Resolution 1244/99.[2]

EU Member countries non-EU Member countries Cooperating countries
 Austria  Iceland  Albania
 Belgium  Liechtenstein  Bosnia and Herzegovina
 Bulgaria  Norway  Kosovo (under the UN Security Council Resolution 1244/99)
 Croatia   Switzerland  Macedonia
 Czech Republic  Turkey  Montenegro
 Cyprus  Serbia
 Denmark
 Estonia
 Finland
 France
 Germany
 Greece
 Hungary
 Ireland
 Italy
 Latvia
 Lithuania
 Luxembourg
 Malta
 Netherlands
 Poland
 Portugal
 Romania
 Slovakia
 Slovenia
 Spain
 Sweden
 United Kingdom

European environment information and observation network

The European environment information and observation network (Eionet) is a partnership network of the EEA and its member and cooperating countries. The EEA is responsible for developing the network and coordinating its activities. To do this, the EEA works closely together with the National Focal Points (NFPs), typically national environment agencies or environment ministries in the member countries.

The NFPs are responsible for coordinating networks of the National Reference Centres (NRCs), bringing altogether around 1000 experts from over 350 national institutions and other bodies dealing with environmental information.

Apart from the NFPs and NRCs, Eionet currently covers six European Topic Centres (ETCs) in the areas of air and climate change, biological diversity, climate change impacts, vulnerability and adaptation, water, land use and spatial information and analysis and sustainable consumption and production.

Annual discharge process

On February 2012, the European Parliament's Committee on Budgetary Control published a draft report[3] identifying potential areas of concern in the use of funds and influence for the 2010 budget. The EEA's Executive Director refuted allegations of irregularities in a public hearing [4]

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted on the report on 27 March 2012[5] and commended the cooperation between the Agency and NGOs working in the environmental area. On 23 October 2012, the European Parliament voted and granted the discharge to the European Environment Agency for its 2010 budget.

On 17 April 2013, the European Parliament (MEPs) voted and granted the discharge to the European Environment Agency for its 2011 budget.

Executive directors

Name Nationality Term(s)
Domingo Jiménez-Beltrán Spain Spain 1994 – 2003
Jacqueline McGlade United Kingdom United Kingdom 2003 – 2013
Hans Bruyninckx Belgium Belgium 2013 –

International cooperation

In addition to its 33 members and six Balkan cooperating countries, the EEA also cooperates and fosters partnerships with its neighbours and other countries and regions, mostly in the context of the European Neighbourhood Policy:[6]

Additionally the EEA cooperates with multiple international organizations and the corresponding agencies of the following countries:

Official languages

The 26 official languages used by the EEA are: Bulgarian, Czech, Croatian, Danish, German, Greek, English, Spanish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Malti, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Swedish and Turkish.

See also

References

  1. ↑ European Network of the Heads of Environment Protection Agencies.
  2. ↑ Countries and Eionet, European Environment Agency, Retrieved on 24 July 2013.
  3. ↑ Draft Report on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Environment Agency for the financial year 2010
  4. ↑ EU agencies rebuked over spending by Valentina Pop, 2 March 2012. From the EU Observer website.
  5. ↑ Agenda for March 27, 2011 meeting of the Committee on Budgetary Control.
  6. ↑ International Coopperation Scroll down to "European Neighborhood Project".
  7. ↑ EU-OSHA.
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