Israeli and German environment ministries to work together on preparing new legislation for integrated pollution prevention and control
The Ministry of Environmental Protection's goal of drafting a "green licensing law" will receive a significant boost by means of an EU-funded "Twinning" project to be officially launched today in Jaffa Port.
The Twinning project, to be implemented jointly by the Israeli and German environment ministries, aims to advance the establishment in Israel of a system of integrated environmental licensing for industry. A new Israeli law, to be based on the European Union directive on integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) would streamline existing permits into one integrated permit, thus creating one unified and simplified approval procedure. A "green license" would serve as a one-stop shop; it would remove obstacles such as bureaucratic and cumbersome licensing procedures, lack of centralized information, and inadequate government support, while providing certainty to the drivers of change in the industrial sector, facilitating high environmental performance and serving as a green track to innovation
In the framework of the twinning project the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), together with other German administrations, will guide Israel through the process of creating such a system, of passing a Green Licensing Law, and improving environmental reporting systems. The project is funded by the European Union with a budget of 900.000 euros and is planned for a period of 18 months. On a day-to-day basis, a Resident Twinning Advisor,Jürgen Friebertshäuser, will work from the ministry's Tel Aviv offices in tandem with his Israeli counterpart, Adv. Ayelet Ben Ami.
As well as presenting and discussing the Twinning project, the June 11 event, will also be an occasion to discuss the entire process of advancing the "Green Licensing" Law with representatives from industry and civil society. Opening the event will be Environmental Protection Minister Amir Peretz, Head of the European Union Delegation to Israel, Ambassador Andrew Standley, and German Ambassador to Israel Andreas Michaelis.
Notes to the editor:
- Israeli Twinning Project Leader: Ms. Shuli Nezer: Senior Deputy Director General - Industries and Licensing at the MOEP. German Twinning Project Leader: Dr. Michael Bass, Senior Officer at BMU.
- · Twinning projects are a European Union initiative to help countries acquire the necessary skills and experience to adopt, implement and enforce EU legislation. On a demand driven basis, the projects bring together public sector expertise from EU Member States and partner countries, with the aim of enhancing co-operation activities. Twinning projects are joint projects awarded following a call for proposals and shared by the partner administrations.
