Animals and exotic plants, a threat for the environment More than 11,000 alien species have been found in the European environment and "10 to 15 % of them have become invasive". Cases range from rare animals such as Canada geese, American bullfrogs, Japanese knotweed an ornamental plant introduced some time ago from the Far East – and Caulerpa seaweed, threatening local fauna and flora. These "invasive alien species” can also "threaten public health, damage crops and livestock and have serious economic effects". The EU Commission is thus considering ways "to tackle this problem, including a new dedicated legislative instrument, and through an "on-line consultation on how to deal with the issue most effectively", ongoing until April. "The results of the consultation will feed into a proposal to appear later this year" said Commissioner Janez Potocnik. "Damage caused by invasive species to our natural capital is estimated to cost up to 12 billion euros every year. The time has come to find an effective policy to counter this growing threat", the Commissioner said.Partnerships: active ageing, agriculture, raw materialsStepping up cooperation in EU Member States for "decisive action to meet three key challenges facing our society", in areas that are crucial to growth and jobs: "the supply of raw materials, sustainable agriculture, and active and healthy ageing". The EU Commission proposes the establishment of three European Innovation partnerships (EIP) aimed at "improving quality of life and position Europe as a global leader". The first partnership is on Raw Materials, the second on Agricultural Sustainability and Productivity. The Commission has endorsed also a "four-year action plan for the Active and Healthy Ageing EIP". EIPs are chaired by the Commission led by a steering group for action across the EU joined by representatives of Member States (Ministers), Members of Parliament, industry leaders, researchers, civil society and other key stakeholders. EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso commented: "We need to innovate to get Europe back on the path to growth and jobs, and to tackle major challenges such as access to raw materials, sustainable agriculture and our ageing society. European Innovation Partnerships will break down silos, remove bottlenecks and focus our efforts on results that matter to our citizens and our businesses". The supply of raw materials, the "lifeblood of today’s high-tech industry", is increasingly under pressure. With a view to increasing Europe’s own production, "the proposal to set up a European Innovation Partnership on raw materials, joint innovation efforts will support exploration, extraction and processing of raw materials". For example, it has been estimated that the value of "unexploited European mineral resources at a depth of 500-1,000 metres is about 100 billion. New technologies will help to extract deeper, in more remote areas and under harsh conditions". Retailers and resource efficiency "Retailers are in a strong position to support resource efficiency they can influence their supply chain’s environmental performance and stimulate changes in consumer behaviour", said EU Commissioner for the Environment Janez Potocnik, commenting on the annual report of the European Retail Forum for Sustainability, presented a few days ago. The report shows "retailers taking the environment into consideration in their business decisions more actively than ever". Retailers in the Forum, created in 2009, pledge "to carry out specific environmental actions to contribute to sustainable consumption and resource efficiency", as regards to distribution, logistics, packaging, energy saving, environmental labeling. The report highlights cases of good practices: the Metro group "introduced a supplier training programme to developing and emerging countries", while Auchan "achieved savings of almost 10,000 tons in the use of packaging material" while Mercadona "eliminated 80 % of single-use plastic bags in 150 stores". Tesco Uk "achieved the goal of sending zero waste to landfills", while Inditex "reduced the average power consumption in 840 stores by 42 %".
