After the successful release of a French national strategy on EDCs, France initiated a debate on the EU’s policies at the meeting of EU environment ministers in Luxembourg on 12 June.
Campaign partner Women in Europe for a Common Future (WECF) France, together with other French NGOs including campaign partners Générations Futures and Réseau Environnement Santé (RES) who supported and actively took part in the elaboration of a French national strategy on EDCs, were particiularly pleased that EDCs were put on the agenda of a meeting of EU Environment Ministers on 12 June.
Ahead of the meeting a briefing note circulated by France and supported by Sweden and Denmark, urged the EU to take action on EDCs.
It is positive to see that five EU member states - Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Austria and Belgium supported the French briefing note and joined forces to ask the EU Commission for a swift move forward on EDCs in Europe.
It is hoped that these concerns will also be shared by Italy, who will take over the EU presidency of the Council for the next six months as from 1 July 2014. The work programme of the Italian presidency for the environment sector does not yet include endocrine disrupters.
The French NGOs are particularly pleased with the position of France, which is both coherent with the package of measures contained in its national Strategy and consistent with the need to put an end to the long-lasting standstill on the adoption of EU EDCs criteria and Strategy.
Resources
- Agenda and background note published ahead of the 12 June Environment Council meeting
- Information note on endocrine disruptors circulated by the French delegation [FR only]
- Press release from the Council of the EU
Post provided by campaign secretariat HEAL
