Why did Ukraine fail to implement EU requirements for environment and climate, and how to fix it?

Tuesday, 5 November 2024 —

European Pravda continues to cover the European Commission’s report on Ukraine and other EU candidate countries. This includes the Eurointegration Ranking comparing Ukraine with other countries aspiring for EU membership and two analyses on Ukraine’s position – one by European Pravda and another by EasyBusiness, plus a review of the justice chapter (read more in the article What the EU saw and didn’t see in its report on justice)

Read more about the report’s assessment of environment and climate change in the column by Natalia Andrusevych, Chair of the Governing Board and resource and analysis center Society and Environment – Another D for environment: How the EU rated Ukraine on the 'environmental' chapter and what to do about it. 

According to Andrusevych, this year’s report within the enlargement package gives Ukraine two "D" in environment and climate – one for current status and one for progress over the past year.

While Ukraine has made some notable strides, certain recommendations from the previous year remain unfulfiled.

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Andrusevych explains that the European Commission has outlined three priorities for Ukraine in 2025 regarding environmental and climate policies, while warning that such slow progress in adopting EU laws could take decades.

The three main objectives for Ukraine next year include:

– Addressing issues related to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA);
– Updating relevant documents within the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and ratifying the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol;
– Restoring the monitoring, reporting and verification system for industrial greenhouse gas emissions and adopting a roadmap for implementing an emissions trading system.

"Achieving each of these three objectives requires close cooperation among key ministries and other stakeholders," Andrusevych reminds readers.

She also notes that despite the war, the European Commission expects Kyiv to take steps not only on environmental assessments but also in providing access to environmental information, monitoring environmental status, climate regulation and reconstruction processes.

In addition to the three primary recommendations, the European Commission report includes assessments and several priorities across all areas of environmental and climate policy.

"For example, the EU has suggested the Ukrainian government will eventually need to close or modernise 6,000 (!) landfills.

Or on water tariffs (where the EU enforces a 'polluter pays' principle). While there are no specific EU demands on tariffs, the tariffs should be high enough to fund water resource management measures, including wastewater treatment. It’s likely the EU expects an increase in water and sewage tariffs," Andrusevych points out.

She mentions that nature protection scored very low and adds that the European Commission expects Ukraine to pass a separate law on timber origin to combat forest degradation (not to be confused with the recent "firewood law" that the EU isn't specifically asking for).

"These numerous issues aren’t in the list of the three main EU expectations for Ukraine in 2025, but they can’t be avoided on the path to EU membership," warns the head of the resource and analysis centre Society and Environment.

Andrusevych believes implementing these objectives would send strong signals in the negotiation process, advising Ukraine to act proactively rather than waiting for specific recommendations.

In her view, the European Commission’s sectoral assessments and identified shortcomings serve as a roadmap that must be fully implemented.

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