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Last week, Irish Trinity College professor and CAP expert Alan Matthews criticized the German presidency's proposal to use unspent funds allocated to eco-schemes. Germany, like the Commission and some political groups in the EP, supports the setting of a minimum allocation of funds for eco-schemes in the first pillar of the CAP. The amount has not yet been set, but Germany is already considering the possibility of allowing transfers of unused funds that will be allocated for eco-schemes to the envelope for other direct payments (DE proposal is available here). Alan Matthews, however, rejects the proposal, saying that eco-schemes would then become a mere form of greenwashing, essentially a mere media bubble created to convince the public of a positive environmental policy direction, although the reality is quite different. According to Matthews, the proposal would allow Member States to increase basic income support for sustainability (area payments) from the funds allocated to eco-schemes.
More information is available here.

Last week, the German Presidency formally proposed to allow the payment of support from the recovery plan to farmers from next year. The European Commission has proposed that the disbursement be linked to the new CAP, which in the case of a two-year transitional period would not release aid until 2023. To release funds immediately to farmers, Germany has proposed making a total of €7.5 billion available in 2021 and 2022. The funds should be released gradually, €2 billion in 2021, and the remaining amount in 2022. The proposal is now being discussed, the discussion is also linked to the negotiations on the transitional period of the CAP and to approve the multiannual financial framework and the recovery plan.

Representatives of some Member States called on the Commission to provide additional information and to carry out impact assessments on the implementation of the objectives of the EU Biodiversity Strategy, even before the states commit themselves to the objectives of the new strategy. The new strategy proposes a few objectives, including expanding the area of organic farming to 25% or expanding the area for non-productive elements to 10% of the area of agricultural land. Reduction targets include a 50% reduction in pesticides, a 20% reduction in fertilizers, and a 50% reduction in antibiotics. Representatives of some Member States stated that it was not possible to commit to objectives for which no impacts, methodologies or specific rules were discussed. Member States are also asking the Commission to provide information on how the implementation of the new nature conservation and restoration objectives will be financed.

In her speech on the state of the European Union on 16/09/2020, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed that the Commission's new goal would be to reduce emissions by an ambitious 55% by 2030. By summer 2021, the Commission should therefore review climate and energy legislation in all sectors to enable such an ambitious target to be met. The new objective is based on a comprehensive assessment of social, economic, and environmental impacts and is intended to stimulate investment in a resource-efficient economy, encourage technological innovation and create so-called "green jobs". To support the necessary investments, the Commission has adopted a new European Renewable Energy Financing Mechanism to make it easier for Member States to finance projects in this area. The mechanism is due to enter into force in early 2021.
More information is available here and here.

On 17/09/2020, the European Commission published a Communication entitled "Strengthening Europe's Climate Ambitions 2030: Investing in a Climate-Neutral Future for the Benefit of Citizens". The Commission states in the Communication that farmers should be directly encouraged to increase carbon sequestration in soil and forests through a carbon sequestration certification mechanism. As part of the impact assessment published by the Commission together with the Communication, the Commission presents several possible scenarios, favouring the creation of a new AFOLU (agriculture, forestry, other land-use) instrument linking the agricultural, forestry, and other land-using sectors. AFOLU could operate in accordance with the European Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). By 2050, the AFOLU sector could contribute to the offset of 425 Mt CO2. The Common Agricultural Policy should also contribute, for example by reducing the volume of fertilizers used.
More information is available here and here.