Regulation (EU) 2021/783 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2021 establishing a Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE), and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1293/2013 (Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 192(1) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions (2),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (3),

Whereas:

(1) Environmental, climate and relevant energy legislation and policy of the Union have delivered substantial improvements to the state of the environment. However, major environmental and climate challenges remain, which, if left unaddressed, will have significant negative consequences for the Union and the well-being of its citizens.

(2) The Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE), established by Regulation (EU) No 1293/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4), for the period 2014 to 2020, is the latest in a series of Union programmes since 1992 which support the implementation of environmental and climate legislation and policy priorities. LIFE was assessed positively in a recent mid-term evaluation as being on track to be effective, efficient and relevant. The 2014-2020 LIFE Programme should, therefore, be continued with certain modifications identified in the mid-term evaluation and subsequent assessments. Accordingly, the Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE) (the 'LIFE Programme') should be established for a period of seven years to align its duration with that of the multiannual financial framework laid down in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 (5).

(3) In pursuing the achievement of the objectives and targets set by environmental, climate and relevant energy legislation, policy and plans, in particular the objectives set out in the communication of the Commission of 11 December 2019 on the European Green Deal (the 'European Green Deal'), and international commitments of the Union, the LIFE Programme should contribute to a just transition towards a sustainable, circular, energy-efficient, renewable energy-based, climate-neutral and -resilient economy, to the protection, restoration and improvement of the quality of the environment, including the air, water and soil, and of health, and to halting and reversing biodiversity loss, including by supporting the implementation and management of the Natura 2000 network and tackling the degradation of ecosystems, either through direct interventions or by supporting the integration of those objectives in other policies. The LIFE Programme should also support the implementation of the general action programmes adopted in accordance with Article 192(3) Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), such as the 7th Environment Action Programme (6) and any subsequent Union environment action programme.

(4) The Union is committed to developing a comprehensive response to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which highlight the intrinsic connection between the management of natural resources to ensure their long-term availability and ecosystem services, and the link of both to human health and sustainable and socially inclusive economic growth. In this spirit, the LIFE Programme should reflect the principles of solidarity, while making a material contribution to both economic development and social cohesion.

(5) With a view to promoting sustainable development, environmental and climate protection requirements should be integrated into the definition and implementation of all Union policies and activities. Synergies and complementarity with other Union funding programmes should, therefore, be promoted, including by facilitating the funding of activities that complement strategic integrated projects and strategic nature projects and support the uptake and replication of solutions developed under the LIFE Programme. Coordination is required to prevent double funding. The Commission and Member States should take steps to prevent administrative overlap and an administrative burden on project beneficiaries, arising from reporting obligations from different financial instruments.

(6) The LIFE Programme should contribute to sustainable development and to the achievement of the objectives and targets of the environmental, climate and relevant energy legislation, strategies, plans and international commitments of the Union, in particular as regards the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Convention on Biological Diversity (7) and the Paris Agreement adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (8) (the 'Paris Agreement on Climate Change'), and, inter alia, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on Access to Information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (9) (the 'Aarhus Convention'), the UNECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution, the UN Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, the UN Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, and the UN Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.

(7) The Union attaches great importance to the long-term sustainability of the results of projects funded by the LIFE Programme, and to the capacity to secure and maintain those results after project implementation, inter alia by project continuation or by replication or transfer of results.

(8) Complying with the Union's commitments under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change requires the transformation of the Union into a sustainable, circular, energy-efficient, renewable energy-based, climate-neutral and -resilient society. Such transformation in turn requires action, with a special focus on sectors that contribute most to the current levels of greenhouse gas emissions and pollution, promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy, as well as contributing to the implementation of the 2030 energy and climate policy framework and the Member States' Integrated National Energy and Climate Plans and to the implementation of the Union's long-term climate and energy strategy, in line with the long-term objectives of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. The LIFE Programme should also include measures that contribute to the implementation of the Union's climate adaptation policy for decreasing vulnerability to the adverse effects of climate change.

(9) Projects under the new 'Clean Energy Transition' subprogramme of the LIFE Programme should focus on the creation of capacity building and diffusion of knowledge, skills, innovative techniques, methods and solutions for reaching the objectives of Union legislation and policy on the transition to renewable energy and to increased energy efficiency. Such capacity building and diffusion are typically coordination and support actions of high added-value at Union level that are aimed at breaking market barriers that hamper the socio-economic transition to sustainable energy, and mainly involve small and medium-sized entities as well as multiple actors, including local and regional public authorities and non-profit organisations. Such actions bring multiple co-benefits, such as tackling energy poverty, improved indoor air quality, reducing local pollutants thanks to energy efficiency improvements and increased distributed renewable energies, and contributing to positive local economic effects and more socially inclusive growth.

(10) In order to contribute to the mitigation of climate change and to the Union's international commitments as regards decarbonisation, the transformation of the energy sector needs to be accelerated. Actions for capacity-building that support energy efficiency and renewable energy, funded until 2020 under Horizon 2020 (10), should be integrated into the new 'Clean Energy Transition' subprogramme of the LIFE Programme, since their objective is not to fund excellence and generate innovation, but to facilitate the uptake of already available technology for renewable energy and energy efficiency, which will contribute to climate mitigation. The LIFE Programme should involve all stakeholders and sectors involved in clean energy transition. The inclusion of such capacity-building actions in the LIFE Programme offers potential for synergies between the subprogrammes and increases the overall coherence of Union funding. Data should, therefore, be collected and disseminated on the uptake of existing research and innovation solutions in the projects of the LIFE Programme, including from the Horizon Europe programme established under Regulation (EU) 2021/695 of the European Parliament and of the Council (11) ('Horizon Europe') and its predecessors.

(11) The impact assessment accompanying the Commission proposal for Directive (EU) 2018/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council (12), which amended Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (13), estimates that meeting the Union's 2030 energy targets will require additional investment of EUR 177 billion annually in the period 2021to 2030. The biggest gaps relate to investment in the decarbonisation of buildings to increase energy efficiency and the use of small-scale renewable energy sources, where capital needs to be channelled towards projects of a highly distributed nature. One of the objectives of the 'Clean Energy Transition' subprogramme, which covers energy efficiency and rapid deployment of renewable energy, is to build capacity for the development and aggregation of such projects, thereby also helping to absorb funds from the European Structural and Investment Funds and act as a catalyst for investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency, also using the financial instruments provided under Regulation (EU) 2021/523 of the European Parliament and of the Council (14).

(12) The LIFE programme is the only programme dedicated specifically to the environment and climate action, and therefore plays a crucial role in supporting the implementation of Union legislation and policies in those areas.

(13) Synergies with Horizon Europe should facilitate identifying and establishing research and innovation needs as regards tackling environmental, climate and energy challenges within the Union during Horizon Europe's strategic research and innovation planning process. The LIFE Programme should continue to act as a catalyst for implementing environmental, climate and relevant energy legislation and policy of the Union, including by taking up and applying research and innovation results from Horizon Europe and helping to deploy them on a larger scale if this can help address environmental, climate or energy transition issues. Horizon Europe's European Innovation Council can provide support to scale up and commercialise new breakthrough ideas that could result from the implementation of LIFE projects. Similarly, synergies with the Innovation Fund under the Emission Trading System, established under Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (15), should also be taken into account.

(14) An action that has received a contribution from the LIFE Programme should also be able to receive a contribution from other Union programmes, provided that such contributions do not cover the same costs. Actions that receive cumulative financing from different Union programmes should be audited only once and in a manner that covers all Union programmes involved and their respective applicable rules.

(15) The communication of the Commission of 3 February 2017 on the EU Environmental Implementation Review: Common challenges and how to combine efforts to deliver better results (EIR) indicates that significant progress is required to accelerate the implementation of the Union environment acquis and to enhance the integration and mainstreaming of environmental and climate objectives into other policies. The LIFE Programme should, therefore, act as a catalyst for the tackling of horizontal, systemic challenges, as well as the root causes of implementation deficiencies identified in the EIR, and for achieving the requisite progress by developing, testing and replicating new approaches; supporting policy development, monitoring and review; improving governance on environmental, climate change and related energy transition matters, including by enhancing stakeholder involvement at all levels, capacity-building, communication and awareness; mobilising investments from Union investment programmes or other financial sources, and by supporting actions to overcome the various obstacles to the effective implementation of key plans required by environmental legislation.

(16) Halting and reversing biodiversity loss and the degradation of ecosystems, including in marine ecosystems, requires support for the development, implementation, enforcement and assessment of relevant Union legislation and policy, including communication of the Commission of 20 May 2020 on the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 – Bringing nature back into our lives, Council Directive 92/43/EEC (16), Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (17) and Regulation (EU) No 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council (18), in particular by developing the knowledge base for policy development and implementation and by developing, testing, demonstrating and applying best practice and solutions, such as effective management, on a small scale or tailored to specific local, regional or national contexts, including integrated approaches for the implementation of the prioritized action frameworks adopted pursuant to Directive 92/43/EEC. This Regulation should contribute to mainstreaming biodiversity action in the Union's policies and to the achievement of the overall ambition of providing 7,5 % of annual spending under the multiannual financial framework to biodiversity objectives in 2024 and 10 % of annual spending under the multiannual financial framework to biodiversity objectives in 2026 and in 2027, while considering the existing overlaps between climate and biodiversity goals. The Union and Member States should track their biodiversity-related expenditure to fulfil their reporting obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Requirements for tracking provided for in other relevant Union legislation should also be met. Biodiversity-related Union expenditure should be tracked in accordance with an effective, transparent and comprehensive methodology to be set out by the Commission, in cooperation with the European Parliament and the Council, as referred to in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources (19)

(17) Recent evaluations and assessments, including the mid-term review of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 and the Fitness Check of Nature legislation, indicate that one of the main underlying causes for insufficient implementation of Union legislation on nature and of the biodiversity strategy is the lack of adequate financing. The main Union funding instruments, including the European Regional Development Fund established under Regulation (EU) No 1301/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (20) (the 'European Regional Development Fund') and the Cohesion Fund established under Regulation (EU) No 1300/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (21) (the 'Cohesion Fund'), the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development established under Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (22) (the 'European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development') and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund established under a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund and repealing Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 (the 'European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund'), could make a significant contribution towards meeting those needs, on a complementary basis. The LIFE Programme could further improve the efficiency of such mainstreaming through strategic nature projects dedicated to acting as a catalyst for the implementation of Union nature and biodiversity legislation and policy, including the actions set out in the prioritized action frameworks adopted pursuant to Directive 92/43/EEC. The strategic nature projects should support programmes of actions in Member States aimed at the mainstreaming of relevant nature and biodiversity objectives into other policies and funding programmes, thus ensuring that appropriate funds are mobilised for implementing those policies. Member States should be allowed to decide, within their Strategic Plan for the Common Agricultural Policy, to use a certain share of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development allocation in order to leverage support for actions that complement strategic nature projects as defined under this Regulation.

(18) Promoting the circular economy and resource efficiency requires a shift in the manner materials and products, including plastics, are designed, produced, consumed, repaired, reused, recycled and disposed of and a focus on the whole lifecycle of products. The LIFE Programme should contribute to the transition to a circular economy model through financial support that targets a variety of actors such as businesses, public authorities and consumers, in particular by applying, developing, and replicating best technology, practice and solutions tailored to specific local, regional or national contexts, including through integrated approaches for the application of the waste hierarchy and the implementation of waste management and prevention plans. By supporting the implementation of the communication of the Commission of 16 January 2018 on a European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy, action could be taken to address the problem of marine litter in particular.

(19) A high level of environmental protection is of fundamental importance for the health and well-being of Union citizens. The LIFE Programme should support the Union's objectives as regards producing and using chemicals in ways that lead to the minimisation of significant adverse effects on human health and the environment, with a view to reaching the objective of a non-toxic environment in the Union. The LIFE Programme should also support activities to facilitate the implementation of Directive 2002/49/EC of the Parliament and of the Council (23) in order to achieve noise levels that do not give rise to significant negative impacts on and risks to human health.