AUTHORS: IEEP-Ecologic

In this study for the European Commission IEEP, with Ecologic, examines the approaches of European governments in lowering costs on businesses imposed through Environmental Law’s various administrative requirements. These include the costs of getting permits and undertaking monitoring. Administrative simplification covers a wide range of possibilities including removing regulations, merging regulations into a more manageable form and resolving or inconsistencies within or between regulations. It also includes reducing the burden of paperwork and the time taken dealing with information requests. The aim of simplification is to reduce regulatory burdens wherever possible but without removing necessary protections for the environment or workers. The report was launched at a conference on 22 June in Brussels which showcased some of the examples and where Andrew Farmer of IEEP presented the results of the work.