EU ministers discuss climate change impact on farming
FT.com / World / UK - EU ministers discuss climate change impact on farming
By Fiona Harvey in London
Published: September 10 2005 03:00 | Last updated: September 10 2005 03:00
The possibility of environ-mental disaster, which could tear the European Union apart and leave much of its farmland abandoned while the rich retreat to gated rural communities, will be presented to Europe's agriculture and environment ministers this weekend, to stimulate action on tackling climate change.
Margaret Beckett, the UK's environment secretary, who will chair the informal meeting under the British presidency, said the EU's agriculture and environment ministers had never before discussed the likely impact of climate change on European farming.
She told the FT: "The [EU's] environment council rarely gives much thought to agriculture, and agriculture almost never thinks about climate change."
The European Environment Agency has prepared a report for the meeting, to be attended by nearly 50 ministers, that will outline some of the possible results of climate change in Europe. These range from the relatively mild to the disastrous, but the best outcomes are from those models in which action is taken promptly by the EU in order to mitigate climate change, and to help people and businesses to adapt to its effects.
Jacqueline McGlade, executive director of the agency, told the Financial Times: "Ministers feel uncomfortable thinking about the future in this way. . . but their policy decisions now on subjects like changes to the CAP [common agricultural policy] have massive long-term impacts. We are showing them what [those impacts] could be."
She said the most likely effect of climate change would be to trigger a few big disasters in the next two decades that would make people call on governments to take strong action.
Tony Blair, the UK prime minister, has promised to make climate change one of the key themes of the UK's presidency of the EU, which runs to the end of the year.
The next formal meeting of agriculture ministers will take place on September 19.
By Fiona Harvey in London
Published: September 10 2005 03:00 | Last updated: September 10 2005 03:00
The possibility of environ-mental disaster, which could tear the European Union apart and leave much of its farmland abandoned while the rich retreat to gated rural communities, will be presented to Europe's agriculture and environment ministers this weekend, to stimulate action on tackling climate change.
Margaret Beckett, the UK's environment secretary, who will chair the informal meeting under the British presidency, said the EU's agriculture and environment ministers had never before discussed the likely impact of climate change on European farming.
She told the FT: "The [EU's] environment council rarely gives much thought to agriculture, and agriculture almost never thinks about climate change."
The European Environment Agency has prepared a report for the meeting, to be attended by nearly 50 ministers, that will outline some of the possible results of climate change in Europe. These range from the relatively mild to the disastrous, but the best outcomes are from those models in which action is taken promptly by the EU in order to mitigate climate change, and to help people and businesses to adapt to its effects.
Jacqueline McGlade, executive director of the agency, told the Financial Times: "Ministers feel uncomfortable thinking about the future in this way. . . but their policy decisions now on subjects like changes to the CAP [common agricultural policy] have massive long-term impacts. We are showing them what [those impacts] could be."
She said the most likely effect of climate change would be to trigger a few big disasters in the next two decades that would make people call on governments to take strong action.
Tony Blair, the UK prime minister, has promised to make climate change one of the key themes of the UK's presidency of the EU, which runs to the end of the year.
The next formal meeting of agriculture ministers will take place on September 19.
posted by Marcel at 4:33 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home