JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
31 March 2004
- –María del Pilar Ayuso González, Anders Wijkman and Peter Liese on behalf of the PPE-DE Group
- –Mechtild Rothe on behalf of the PSE Group
- –Nicholas Clegg on behalf of the ELDR Group
- –Claude Turmes on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
- –Mihail Papayannakis on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group
- –GUE/NGL (B5‑0173/2004),
- –PSE (B5‑0174/2004),
- –Verts/ALE (B5‑0175/2004),
- –PPE-DE (B5‑0176/2004),
- –ELDR (B5‑0181/2004),
European Parliament resolution on the International Conference for Renewable Energies (Bonn, June 2004)
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the European Parliament and Council directive on the promotion of electricity from renewable energy sources in the internal market,
– having regard to the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development of 1992, which described environmental protection and economic development as an interdependent and indivisible challenge,
– having regard to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of 1992, in particular its Article 2 and its related Kyoto Protocol of 1997,
– having regard to the outcome of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg from 26 August to 4 September 2002,
– having regard to the recommendations of the European Conference for Renewable Energies held in Berlin on 19-21 January 2004,
– having regard to the role of renewable energy in the broader context of sustainable development and its positive impact on the security of energy supplies, economic development, job creation, CO2 reduction and poverty eradication,
– having regard to Rule 37(4) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas the Union and the Member States agree on the need to promote renewable energy sources as a priority measure, given that they make it possible to meet the Kyoto targets more quickly,
B. whereas the EU must ensure a further increase in the use of renewable energy and investment in energy efficiency,
C. whereas renewable energy is one of the fastest growing industries in the EU, creating new innovative jobs, and whereas the European renewable energy industry leads the world in the development of technologies for renewable electricity generation,
1. Welcomes the initiative taken by the German Government to organise the 'renewables 2004' conference;
2. Urges the Commission and the Council to start a political process of setting ambitious, timetabled targets for increasing the share of renewable energy in final energy consumption, addressing the medium- and long-term time frame in advance of the International Conference in Bonn in June 2004;
3. Calls upon the Commission and the Council to make the necessary efforts to reach a target of 20% for the contribution by renewable energy to total domestic energy consumption in the EU by 2020;
4. Underlines the strategic importance of renewable energy and energy efficiency in several policy areas of the EU and in international relations, notably development cooperation;
5. Calls upon the Commission and the Council to make access to sustainable energy supply a priority in poverty reduction strategies and, in order to encourage and facilitate such a development, to ask major financing institutions, such as the EIB, EBRD, World Bank and national Export Credit Agencies, to give priority to investments in renewables and energy efficiency;
6. Calls on the Commission to develop a regulatory framework for accelerating the growth of markets for renewable energy and at the same time creating a level playing field, tackling administrative and trade barriers through the strict enforcement of regulations at local, national and European level;
7. Calls on the Commission urgently to undertake a review of the subsidies in the energy sector,
8. Calls on Member States to promote the use of biofuels, particularly in public transport,
9. Stresses the need to increase support for R&D and innovation in renewable energies and disseminate and promote the results to all sectors of society;
10. Urges all governments to ratify and implement the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as well as the 1997 Kyoto Protocol;
11. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and accession countries.