European Union
Committed to sustainable development European environmental policy contributes towards sustainable development
in tourism with directives, voluntary tools and basic orientations,
including: Directives:
high relevance for destinations Managing Natura 2000 Sites
The EU Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and Fauna
and Flora establishes a community wide network of Special Areas
of Conservation and Special Protected Areas. It is a key means
of achieving the principle of environmental integration and ultimately
sustainable development.
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/nature/ Water Framework Directive
This new directive expands the scope of water protection to all waters
and sets clear objectives that a “good status” must
be achieved for all European waters by 2015 and that water use
is sustainable throughout Europe.
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/water/water-framework/index_en.html Bathing water quality
The 1976 Bathing Water Directive has set binding standards for bathing
waters throughout the European Union. The annual Bathing Water
Report and Tourist Atlas show substantial progress in the quality
of bathing waters and large public awareness.
http://europa.eu.int/water/water-bathing/index_en.html Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)
The SEA-Directive is to ensure that there is an environmental assessment
of the impact of regional and local plans and programmes during
their preparation and prior to their adoption.
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/eia/home.htm In addition to such European directives and national legislation
the EU member states have signed International Conventions aiming
to preserve the rich diversity of nature and limiting their effects
on climate change: the Convention on Biological Diversity
(http://www.biodiv.org)
and the Kyoto Protocol (http://unfccc.int). 
Voluntary tools for tourism businesses
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Environmental and Audit Management Scheme (EMAS)
EMAS is a voluntary management system for businesses and organisations
that wish to improve their operational environmental protection
measures on a continual basis beyond the practices called
for by law. It goes beyond the ISO 14001, the international
standard for environmental management in businesses.
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/emas/index_en.htm |
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European Eco-label for tourist accommodation service (EU
Flower)
Since 2003 the “European Flower” has been available
to hotels, guesthouses, youth hostels and similar services and
in 2004 the scheme is being extended to cover camping sites.
Thus any accommodation service in Europe can apply for certification
of its environmental performance.
http://www.eco-label-tourism.com |
Basic orientation for the sustainability of
European Tourism
This paper, published in November 2003, emphasises the need to ensure
the consistency of various Community policies and measures affecting
the sustainability of tourism and the competitiveness of the industry.
http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/services/tourism/index_en.htm The VISIT partners support the implementation of EU-Directives,
voluntary tools and basic orientation. They hope that within the
European Commission the collaboration between DG Enterprise and DG
Environment can be strengthened and lead to further improvements
towards sustainable tourism.
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