Suchergebnisse

A large part of the European population is still exposed to ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels exceeding the European Union (EU) air quality standards, being a key challenge to reduce NO2 concentrations across many European urban areas, particularly close to roads. In this work, a trend analysis of pollutants involved in NO2 processes was done for the period 2003–2014 in traffic sites fromthree Spanish cities (Barcelona,Madrid and Granada) that still exceed the European NO2 air quality standard limits. We also estimated the contributions of primary NO2 emissions and photo-chemically formed NO2 to the observed ambient NO2 concentrations in order to explore their possible role in the observedNO2 concentration trends. TheNOx andNOconcentrations at these traffic sites showed significant decreasing trends during the period 2003–2014, especially at Barcelona (BARTR) andMadrid (MADTR) traffic stations. The NO2 concentrations showed statistically significant downward trends at BARTR and MADTR and remained unchanged at Granada traffic station (GRATR) during the study period. Despite the significant decrease in NO2 concentrations in BCNTR and MADTR during the analysed period, the NO2 concentrations observed over these sites still above the annual NO2 standard limit of 40 μg m−3 and, therefore, more efficient measures are still needed. Primary NO2 emissions significantly influence NO2 concentrations at the three analysed sites. However, as no drastic changes are expected in the after-exhaust treatment technology that can reduce primary NO2 emissions to zero in the near future, only a substantial reduction in NOx emissions will help to comply with the NO2 European air quality standards. Reduction of 78%, 56% and 16% on NOx emissions in Barcelona,Madrid and Granada were estimated to be necessary to comply with the NO2 annual limit of 40 μg m−3.

Concerned about the EU's apparent lack of cultural legitimacy, EU institutions have increasingly engaged in the transnational politics of history to enhance European identity and foster EU legitimacy. The House of European History museum project in Brussels marks a high point in the European Parliament's history politics. Based on document analysis and interviews, an analysis of the project's origins and evolution highlights the narrow limits of cultural engineering from above, by EU institutions, however. The constraining dissensus in EU politics has forced the European Parliament to rely entirely on the curators and professional historians to legitimize its museum as one that conforms to prevailing curatorial and historical standards. As a result, the first permanent exhibition differs markedly from the original plan. Its narrative has become East Europeanized and the history of European integration proper has been marginalized.

Beyond the establishment of the European Union, in a context where nationalism of the nineteenth century continues to have real success in the twentieth century, debates about the historical past and the future of this important actor on the international scene are always present in the current political environment and the European academia and beyond. The analysis on the character of the EU, the essence of the European integration process, the many types of internal and external borders are in a constant change under the impact of numerous factors of influence of all kinds, and this is the very topic of this volume.
Not coincidentally chosen by the editors, this volume titled The European Space. Borders and Issues brings together a collection of articles and studies that combine, for a scientific purpose, the authors' concerns regarding the exceptional scientific work of Professor Ioan Horga. Complex analyzes of the European space are crowned by an overview of European realities, the capacity to see beyond the historical realities of European prospects. It took into account the historical perspective on European space, whether it was bent on present realities, Professor Ioan Horga vocation is leading the research, the ability to see both the general and the particular. Either that he has taken into account the historical perspective on the European space or he has been preoccupied with the present realities, Professor Ioan Horga's vocation is leading the research, the ability to see both the general and the particular.

AbstractThe divergent responses of three CEECs ‐ Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia ‐ to the common evolution of problems of agriculturally induced water pollution into matters of international concern is analysed from the end of their communist regimes to accession to the European Union (EU) in 2004. The early years of transition were characterised by an emerging international socialisation of domestic elites with Western academics and policy networks. These networks presented opportunities for norm entrepreneurs, who sought to draw attention to the problem of agriculturally induced water pollution and realign domestic policy. The success of these norm entrepreneurs depended on the positions they held in elite networks, their state's geo‐political concerns and desires for international legitimacy, and the degree to which productionist interests were entrenched in agricultural ministries. In contrast, the late 1990s and early 2000s were dominated by preparations for EU membership, particularly adoption of the acquis communautaire. While the CEECs had no option but to transpose EU directives into domestic legislation, the nature of directives has meant that they have had considerable leeway in terms of the administrative solutions chosen. This is illustrated by the Nitrates Directive; the three countries studied have adopted markedly different responses and sought expertise from established Member States that closely matched their own outlook. Arguments that the CEECs are en masse environmental laggards or merely passive players in the process of Europeanisation are rejected.

This study provides empirical evidence related to the &ldquo ; it pays to be green&rdquo ; hypothesis. Based on information from panel data approximately 42 industrial companies during an 8-year period, we determine some of the factors and contingences that affect the fulfilment of that hypothesis. We find that a certain level of proactivity in environmental strategy design is one of the conditions that favors a positive relationship between environmental investment and financial performance. We also provide empirical evidence on how some external conditions affect this positive relationship, such as regulatory pressure from the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) and the financial crisis.

The so-called Troika, consisting of the EU-Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), was supposed to support the member states of the euro area which had been hit hard by a sovereign debt crisis. For that purpose, economic adjustment programs were drafted and monitored in order to prevent the break-up of the euro area and sovereign defaults. The cooperation of these institutions, which was born out of necessity, has been partly successful, but has also created persistent problems. With the further increase of public debt, especially in France and Italy, the danger of a renewed crisis in the euro area was growing. The European Stability Mechanism (ESM) together with the (strongly politicized) European Commission will replace the Troika in the future, following decisions of the EU Summit of December 2018. It shall play the role of a European Monetary Fund in the event of a crisis. The IMF, on the other side, will no longer play an active role in solving sovereign debt crises in the euro area. The current course is, however, inadequate to tackle the core problems of the euro zone and to avoid future crises, which are mainly structural in nature and due to escalating public debt and lack of international competitiveness of some member countries. The current Corona crisis will aggravate the institutional problems. It has led to a common European fiscal response ("Next Generation EU"). This rescue and recovery program will not be financed by ESM resources and will not be monitored by the ESM. One important novelty of this package is that it involves the issuance of substantial common European debt.