The meeting saw the adoption of three EU Council conclusions on the position of the European Union for the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP25), preparations for the future EU Environment Action Programme and conclusions regarding strengthening of circular economy aimed at building a sustainable society.

During the discussion on the conclusions concerning the preparations for COP25, a representative of Poland, which held the COP24 Presidency, underlined the importance of the meeting in Chile, calling on the EU to develop an unambiguous and coherent position. The adoption of the COP25 conclusions was based on demanding negotiations due to differing opinions between the delegates with regards to the issue of increasing EU contribution to the Paris Agreement. Finally, the Council has adopted a compromise text of conclusions, which adequately reflects the demands issued by Poland.

The Conclusions adopted by the EU Member States on the 8th Environment Action Programme have confirmed the need to establish and implement a programme constituting a basis for the EU environmental policy for the period of 2021-2030.

“Poland is pleased to see that the conclusions take into consideration three exceptionally important areas of action, such as: biodiversity, climate change and the circular economy, which will undoubtedly pose major challenges in the decade to come,” said Deputy Minister of Environment Sławomir Mazurek.

Considering the conclusions concerning the circular economy, Deputy Minister Mazurek pointed out what follows: “Further actions aimed at circular economy must emphasize eco-design of products and production processes in order to reduce the amount of waste; both in the manufacturing process and during end use; moreover, generating waste should be delayed by ensuring that products have the longest possible service life.”

In addition, environment and climate ministers held another debate regarding the EU's long-term strategy on climate. The discussion focused on the issues of conditions and incentives which should be strengthened or introduced at EU level in the medium and long term in order to allow the EU to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. During his speech, the Polish representative pointed out that the existing frameworks and mechanisms implemented by the EU will not suffice to achieve the ambitious goal of climate neutrality. Increased ambitions should entail the introduction of additional measures in order to facilitate the ambitious objective.

“Transformation, in particular short-term, may pose a particular challenge for many sectors and inadequate implementation may increase the social and regional inequalities. First, we need to precisely identify the sectors and regions most at risk, and later introduce appropriate support mechanisms for transition and fair transformation," said Deputy Minister Mazurek.

The Deputy Minister of Environment also addressed the need to increase the efforts taken by the EU in the area of protecting and restoring global forests; the Deputy Minister of Environment has thus expressed his support for the initiative to strengthen cooperation to reduce the pressure on forests. He pointed out that forests play a key and multi-dimensional role on a global scale.

“Forests are crucial for solving global problems stemming from development; at the same, time they are a direct response to global challenges and the implementation of the three Rio Conventions” - noted the Deputy Minister.

However, in the context of the role of forests as absorbers, Deputy Minister Mazurek reminded about the “Forests for Climate” Ministerial Declaration signed at COP24 in Katowice.