31 Amendments of Stanislav POLČÁK related to 2022/0160(COD)
Amendment 3 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) Renewable energy plays a fundamental role in delivering on these objectives, given that the energy sector today accountributes todays for over 75% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the Union. By reducing those greenhouse gas emissions, assuming there are suitably selected sites for installation, renewable energy also contributes to tackling environmental- related challenges such as biodiversity loss and in any case to reducing pollution in line with the objectives of the Zero- Pollution Action Plan.
Amendment 10 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) Some of the most common issues faced by renewable energy project developers relate to procedures established at national or regional level to assess the environmental impacts of the proposed projects. Therefore, it is appropriate to streamline certain environmental-related aspects of the permit-granting procedures and processes for renewable energy projects.
Amendment 11 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 8
Recital 8
(8) A faster roll-out of renewable energy projects could be supported by strategic planning carried out by Member States. Member States should identify the landonshore and sea areas necessary for the installation of plants for the production of energy from renewable sources in order to meet their national contributions towards the revised 2030 renewable energy target set out in Article 3(1) of Directive (EU) 2018/2001. Such areas should reflect their estimated trajectories and total planned installed capacity and should be identified by renewable energy technology set in the Member States’ updated national energy and climate plans pursuant to Article 14 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999. The identification of the required landonshore and sea areas should take into consideration the availability of the renewable energy resources and the potential offered by the different landonshore and sea areas for renewable energy production of the different technologies, the projected energy demand overall and in the different regions of the Member State, and the availability of relevant grid infrastructure, storage and other flexibility tools bearing in mind the capacity needed to cater for the increasing amount of renewable energy.
Amendment 18 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) The provisions of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters23 (‘the Aarhus Convention’) regarding access to information, public participation in decision-making, and access to justice in environmental matters, in particular the provisions relating to public participation and to access to justice remain applicable, where relevant. __________________ 23 Council Decision 2005/370/EC of 17 February 2005 on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Community, of the Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (OJ L 124, 17.5.2005, p. 1).
Amendment 24 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) In the designated renewables go-to areas, renewable energy projects that comply with the rules and measures identified in the plan or plans prepared by Member States, should benefit from a rebuttable presumption of not having significant effects on the environment. Therefore, there should be an exemption from the need to carry out a specificn environmental impact assessment at project level in the sense of Directive 2011/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council24, with the exception of projects which are likely to have significant effects on the environment in another Member State or where a Member State likely to be significantly affected so requests. The obligations under the UNECE Espoo Convention on environmental impact assessment in a transboundary context of 25 February 1991 should remain applicable for Member States where the project is likely to cause a significant transboundary impact in a third country. __________________ 24 Directive 2011/92/EU of the European parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment.
Amendment 27 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) The designation of renewables go- to areas should allow renewable energy plants, their grid connection as well as co- located energy storage facilities located in these areas to benefit from predictability and streamlined administrative procedures. In particularSpecifically, projects located in renewable go-to areas should benefit from accelerated administrative procedures, including a tacit agreement in case of a lack of response by the competent authority on an administrative step by the established deadline, unlesswith the exception of cases where the specific project is subject to an environmental impact assessment. These projects should also benefit from clearly delimited deadlines and legal certainty as regards the expected outcome of the procedure. Following the application for projects in a renewables go-to area, Member States should carry out a fast screening of such applications with the aim to identify if any of such projects is highly likely toassumed that it could give rise to significant unforeseen adverse effects in view of the environmental sensitivity of the geographic area where they are located that were not identified during the environmental assessment of the plan or plans designating renewables go-to areas carried out in accordance with Directive 2001/42/EC. All projects located in renewables go-to areas should be deemed approved at the end of such screening process. Only if Member States have clear evidence to consider that a specific project is highly likely to give rise to such significant unforeseen adverse effects, Member States should, after motivating such decision, subject such project to an environmental assessment in accordance with Directive 2011/92/EC and, where relevant, Directive 92/43/EEC25. Given the need to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy sources, such assessment should be carried out within six months. __________________ 25 Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the convervation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992).
Amendment 31 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 16
Recital 16
(16) In view of the need to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy sources, the identification of renewables go-to areas should not prevent the ongoing and future installation of renewable energy projects in all areas available for renewable energy deployment. Such projects should remain subject to the obligation to carry out a special dedicated environmental impact assessment in accordance with Directive 2001/92/EU and should be subject to the procedures foreseen for renewable energy projects located outside go-to areas. To speed up permitting at the scale necessary for the achievement of the renewable energy target set out in Directive (EU) 2018/2001, also the procedures applicable to projects outside of go-to areas should be simplified and streamlined with the introduction of clear maximum deadlines for all steps of the procedure, including dedicated environmental impact assessments per project.
Amendment 32 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) Multiple Current multi-purposeuse of space for renewable energy production and other land and sea uses (such as food production or nature protection or restoration) alleviates land and sea use constraints. In this context, spatial planning is an important tool to identify and steer synergies for land and sea use at an early stage. Member States should explore, enable and favour the multiple uses of the areas identified as a result of the spatial planning measures adopted.
Amendment 37 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) In addition to installing new renewable energy plants, repowering existing renewable energy plants has a significant potential to contribute to the achievement of the renewable energy targets. Since, usually, the existing renewable energy plants have been installed in sites with significant renewable energy resource potential, repowering can ensure the continued use of these sites while reducing the need to designate new sites for renewable energy projects. Repowering includes further benefits such as the existing grid connection, in the case of geographically previously suitably selected sites, a likely higher degree of public acceptance and knowledge of environmental impacts. The repowering of renewable energy projects entails changes to or the extension of existing projects to different degrees. The permit-granting process, including environmental assessments and screening, for the repowering of renewable energy projects should be limited to the potential impacts resulting from the change or extension compared to the original project.
Amendment 38 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 20
Recital 20
(20) Directive (EU) 2018/2001 introduces streamlined permit-granting procedures for repowering. In order to respond to the increasing need for the repowering of existing renewable energy plants and to make full use of the advantages it offers, it is appropriate to establish an even shorter procedure for the repowering of renewable energy plants located in go-to areas, including a shorter screening procedure. For the repowering of existing renewable energy plants located outside go-to areas, Member States should ensure a simplified and swift permit- granting process which should not exceed one year, while fully taking into account the “do no harm” principle of the European Green Deal.
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) Renewable energy sources are crucial to fight climate change, reduce energy prices, decrease the Union’s dependence on fossil fuels and ensure the Union’s security of supply. For the purposes of the relevant Union environmental legislation, in the necessary case-by-case assessments to ascertain whether a plant for the production of energy from renewable sources, its connection to the grid, the related grid itself or storage assets is of overriding public interest in a particular case, Member States should presume these plants and their related infrastructure as being of overriding public interest and serving public health and safety, except where there is clear evidence that these projects may have major adverse effects on the environment which cannot be sufficiently mitigated or compensated. Considering such plants as being of overriding public interest and serving public health and safety would allow such projects to benefit from a simplified assessment.
Amendment 47 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 25
Recital 25
(25) There is an urgent need to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels in buildings and to accelerate efforts to decarbonise and electrify their energy consumption. In order to enable the cost-effective installation of solar technologies at a later stage, all new buildings should be “solar ready”, that is, designed to optimise the solar generation potential on the basis of the site’s solar irradiance, enabling the fruitfuleffective installation of solar technologies without costly structural interventions. In addition, Member States should ensure the deployment of suitable solar installations on new buildings, both residential and non- residential, and on existing non-residential buildings. Large scale deployment of solar energy on buildings would make a major contribution to shielding more effectively consumers from increasing and volatile prices of fossil fuels, reduce the exposure of vulnerable citizens to high energy costs and result in wider environmental, economic and social benefits. In order to efficiently exploit the potential of solar installations on buildings, Member States should define criteria for the implementation of, and possible exemptions from, the deployment of solar installations on buildings in line with the assessed technical and economic potential of the solar energy installations and the characteristics of the buildings covered by this obligation.
Amendment 49 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 27
Recital 27
(27) Energy efficiency is a key area of action, without which independence from fossil fuels and energy imports from Russia and the full decarbonisation of the Union´s economy cannot be achieved. The need to capture the cost-effective energy saving opportunities has led to the Union´s current energy efficiency policy. In December 2018, a new 2030 Union headline energy efficiency target of at least 32,5% (compared to projected energy use in 2030) was included as part of the 'Clean Energy for All Europeans package’. To increase independence and resilience and to achieve the increased climate ambition, energy efficiency improvements should be further raised to at least 39% for final energy and 41.5% for primary energy, based on the 2007 Reference Scenario projections for 2030.
Amendment 50 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 9a
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 9a
9a) ’renewables go-to area’ means a specific location, whether on land or sea, which has been designated by a Member State as particularly suitable for the installation of plants for the production of energy from renewable sources, both in terms of the potential for energy production and distribution and the environmental impacts that renewable energy production would cause in the area, other than biomass combustion plants. ;
Amendment 57 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 15 – paragraph 2a
Article 15 – paragraph 2a
2a. Member States shall promote the testing of new renewable energy technologies in pilot projects in a real- world environment, for a limited period of time, in accordance with the applicable EU legislation and accompanied by appropriate safeguards to ensure the secure operation of the electricity system and avoid disproportionate impacts on the functioning of the internal market and the environment, under the supervision of a competent authority.;
Amendment 59 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 15b – paragraph 1
Article 15b – paragraph 1
1) By [1 year after the entry into force], Member States shall identify the landonshore and sea areas necessary for the installation of plants for the production of energy from renewable sources that are required in order to meet their national contributions towards the 2030 renewable energy target in accordance with Article 3 of this Directive. Such areas shall be commensurate with the estimated trajectories and total planned installed capacity by renewable energy technology set in national energy and climate plans of Member States, as updated pursuant to Article 14 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999.
Amendment 72 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
By [2 years after the entry into force], Member States shall adopt a plan or plans designating, within the areas referred to in Article 15b(1), renewables go-to areas for one or more types of renewable energy sources. In that plan or plans, Member States shall:
Amendment 84 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point a – indent 1
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point a – indent 1
— give priority to artificial and built surfaces, such as rooftops and building facades, transport infrastructure areas, parking areas, waste sites, industrial sites, mines, artificial inland water bodies, lakes or reservoirs, and, where appropriate, urban waste water treatment sites, as well as degraded land not usable for agriculture;
Amendment 93 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point a – indent 2
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point a – indent 2
— exclude Natura 2000 sites and nature parks and reservesareas of special nature and landscape protection, the identified bird migratory routes as well as other areas identified based on sensitivity maps and the tools referred to in the next point, except for artificial and built surfaces located in those areas such as rooftops, parking areas or transport infrastructure.
Amendment 103 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point b
Article 15c – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point b
b) Establish appropriate rules for the designated renewable go-to areas, including on the mitigation measures to be adopted for the installation of renewable energy plants, co-located energy storage facilities, as well as assets necessary for their connection to the grid, in order to avoid or, if not possible, to significantly reducreduce as far as possible the negative environmental impacts that may arise. Where appropriate, Member States shall ensure that appropriate mitigation measures are applied to prevent the situations described in Articles 6(2) and 12(1) of Directive 92/43/EEC, Article 5 of Directive 2009/147/EEC and Article 4(1)(a)(i) and (ii) of Directive 2000/60/EC. Such rules shall be targeted to the specificities of each identified renewable go-to area, the renewable energy technology or technologies to be deployed in each area and the identified environmental impacts. Compliance with such rules and the implementation of the appropriate mitigation measures by the individual projects shall result in the presumption that projects are not in breach of those provisions without prejudice to paragraphs 4 and 5 of Article 16a. Where novel mitigation measures to prevent as much as possible the killing or disturbance of species protected under Council Directive 92/43/EEC and Directive 2009/147/EEC, or any other environmental impact, have not been widely tested as regards their effectiveness, Member States may allow their use for one or several pilot projects for a precisely pre-defined limited time period, provided that the effectiveness of such measures is closely monitored and appropriate steps are taken immediately if they do not prove to be effective.
Amendment 144 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 2
Article 16a – paragraph 2
2) The permit-granting process for the repowering of plants and for new installations with an electrical capacity of less than 150 kW, co-located energy storage facilities as well as their grid connection, located in renewables go-to areas shall not exceed six months. Where duly justified on the ground of extraordinary circumstances, such as on grounds of overriding safety reasons where the repowering project impacts substantially on the grid or the original capacity, size or performance of the installation, that one yearsix month period may be extended by up to three months. Member States shall clearly inform the project developer about the extraordinary circumstances that justify the extension.
Amendment 152 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1
Article 16a – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1
Without prejudice to paragraphs 4 and 5, by derogation from Article 4(2) of Directive 2011/92/EU, and Annex II, points 3(a), (b), (d), (h), (i), and 6(c) alone or in conjunction with point 13(a) to that DirectiveAnnex II as far as this concerns renewable energy projects, new applications for renewable energy plants, except for biomass combustion plants, including the repowering of plants, in already designated renewables go-to areas for the respective technology, co-located storage facilities as well as their connection to the grid, shall be exempted from the requirement to carry out a dedicatedn environmental impact assessment under Article 2(1) of Directive 2011/92/EU, provided that these projects comply with the rules and measures set out in accordance with Article 15c(1), point (b). The exemption from the application of Directive 2011/92/EU above shall not apply to projects which are likely to have significant effects on the environment in another Member State or where a Member State likely to be significantly affected so requests, as provided for in Article 7 of the said Directive.
Amendment 162 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1
Article 16a – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1
The competent authorities of Member States shall carry out a screening of the applications referred to in paragraph 3. Such screening shall aim to identify if any of such projects is highly likelycan be reasonably expected to give rise to significant unforeseen adverse effects in view of the environmental sensitivity of the geographical areas where they are located, that were not identified during the environmental assessment of the plan or plans designating renewables go-to areas carried out in accordance with Directive 2001/42/EC and, if relevant, with Directive 92/43/EEC. The screening carried out for the repowering of projects shall be limited to the potential impacts stemming from the change or extension compared to the original project.
Amendment 167 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 2
Article 16a – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 2
For the purpose of such screening, the project developer shall provide information on the characteristics of the project, on its compliance with the rules and measures identified according to Article 15c (1), points (b) and (c), for the specific go-to area, on any additional measures adopted by the project and how these measures address environmental impacts. Such screening shall be finalised within 30 days from the date of submission of the applications for new renewable energy plants, with the exception of applications for installations with an electrical capacity of less than 150 kW. For such installations and for new applications for the repowering of plants, the screening phase shall be finalized within 15 days.
Amendment 172 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 5
Article 16a – paragraph 5
5) Following the screening process, the applications referred to in paragraph 3 shall be authorised from an environmental perspective without requiring any express decision from the competent authority, unless the competent authority adopts an administrative decision, duly motivated and based on clear evidence, that a specific project is highly likely to possibly give rise to significant unforeseen adverse effects in view of the environmental sensitivity of the geographic area where they are located that cannot be mitigated by the measures identified in the plan or plans designating go-to areas or proposed by the developer for the project. Such decision shall be made available to the public. Such projects shall be subject to an assessment in accordance with Directive 2011/92/EC and, if applicable, to an assessment under Article 6(3) of Directive 92/43/EEC, which shall be carried out within six months following the screening decision.
Amendment 175 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 6
Article 16a – paragraph 6
6) In the permit-granting process of the applications referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, the lack of reply of the relevant administrative bodies within the established deadline shall result in the specific administrative steps to be considered as approved, except in those cases where the specific project is subject to an environmental impact assessment in accordance with paragraph 5. All resulting decisions will be publicly available.";
Amendment 178 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16a – paragraph 6 a (new)
Article 16a – paragraph 6 a (new)
Amendment 192 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 9
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 9
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16c – title
Article 16c – title
Permit-granting process for the installation of solar energy equipment in artificial structures/buildings
Amendment 200 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 9
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 9
Directive (EU) 2018/2001
Article 16c – paragraph 1
Article 16c – paragraph 1
1) Member States shall ensure that the permit-granting process referred to in Article 16(1) for the installation of solar energy equipment, including building- integrated solar installations, in existing or future artificial structures/buildings, with the exclusion of artificial water surfaces, shall not exceed three months, provided that the primary aim of such structures/buildings is not solar energy production. By derogation from Article 4(2) of Directive 2011/92/EU andAnnex II, points 3(a) and (b), alone or in conjunction with point 13(a) to that Directiveof Annex II, such installation of solar equipment shall be exempted from the requirement, if applicable, to carry out a dedicated environmental impact assessment under Article 2(1) of Directive 2011/92/EU.";
Amendment 214 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Directive 2010/31/EU
Article 9a – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 9a – paragraph 2 – point c
c) by 31 December 2029, on all new residential, public and commercial buildings.
Amendment 219 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Directive 2012/27/EU
Article 3 – paragraph 5
Article 3 – paragraph 5
5. Member States shall collectively ensure a reduction of energy consumption of at least 13 % in 2030 compared to the projections of the 2020 Reference Scenario so that the Union’s final energy consumption amounts to no more than 750 Mtoe and the Union’s primary energy consumption amounts to no more than 980 Mtoe in 2030.