BRUXELLES, The European Parliament on Tuesday voted for the establishment of minimum emission limits for industries in new integrated air pollution legislation.
The new air pollution legislation, proposed by the European Commission, is aimed to merge seven current laws. The European Parliament welcomed the Commission's proposals for tighter rules, but wanted the Commission to set up a pollution "safety net" -- emission limits that should not be exceeded by any of the 52,000 industrial installations across the European Union (EU).
The parliament believes that widespread recourse to exemptions under the current rules leads to market distortions. A pollution safety net will improve the situation.
The European Parliament also wanted greater flexibility in granting pollution permits, giving preferential treatment to hospitals. The house also rejected the Commission's proposal to differentiate between different poultry species or lower the current threshold of 40,000 places for poultry to be covered by the legislation.
An amendment put forward by some parliament members to introduce carbon dioxide emission limit value for large power plants was rejected as it was deemed non-admissible under the rules of procedure. The resolution was adopted with 402 votes in favor, 189 against and 54 abstentions in Strasbourg, France.
Source: Xinhua News Agency
