Sustainability and efficiency in the use of resources in Portugal

The impacts of PO SEUR (2014-2020)

Authors

  • Eduardo Medeiros Iscte - Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, DINÂMIA’CET-Iscte https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8877-5606
  • Bernardo Valente Iscte - Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, CIS-Iscte https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8332-7639
  • Vasco Gonçalves Iscte - Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, DINÂMIA’CET-Iscte
  • Paula Castro Iscte - Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, CIS-Iscte

Keywords:

PO SEUR, Territorial Impact Assessment, Environmental Sustainability, Climate adaptations, Low-Emissions Economy.

Abstract

We live in an era with growing global concerns in the field of environmental sustainability. Institutional and social sensitivity to environmental protection is particularly relevant in the territory of the European Union (EU). In this regard, EU Cohesion Policy allocates a significant part of its financial package to attain strategic policy objectives that provide proactive support for the achievement of environmentally sustainable territorial development processes. In Portugal, the PO SEUR - Operational Programme for Sustainability and Efficient Use of Resources - has acted as a critical instrument to support sustainable development. In this article, an impact assessment methodology was used to assess the implementation of the PO SEUR (2014-2020) in mainland Portugal in five dimensions of analysis: (i) Low-emissions economy; (ii) Adaptation to Climate Change; (iii) Risk Prevention and Management; (iv) Environmental Protection and (v) Resource Efficiency. Based on the collected data it was possible to verify that, in general, the PO SEUR had a positive impact on sustainability and efficiency in the use of resources in Mainland Portugal in the period 2014-2020. However, this impact generally ranged from low to moderately positive impacts. In this regard, the highest positive impacts were observed in the ‘adaptation to climate change’ dimension and the least positive in the ‘low emission economy’ dimension.

References

AD&C (2018) Relatório do Desenvolvimento e Coesão, Agência para o Desenvolvimento e Coesão, Lisboa.

APA (2016) Plano Nacional da Água, Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente, Lisboa.

APA (2019) Roteiro para a neutralidade carbónica 2050. Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente, Lisboa.

BP (2020) BP Statistical Review of World Energy (69th Edition), British Petroleum, London

CE (2001) Desenvolvimento Sustentável na Europa para um mundo melhor: Estratégia da União Europeia em favor do desenvolvimento sustentável, Comissão Europeia, Bruxelas.

CE (2010) Estratégia Europa 2020, Comissão Europeia, Bruxelas.

CE (2011) Política de Coesão da UE 2014-2020: direcionar os investimentos para as principais prioridades de crescimento, Bruxelas

CE (1999) MEANS – Evaluation socio-economic programmes – Evaluating Design and Management, Volume 1 — Comissão Europeia, Luxemburgo.

CE (2009) Impact Assessment Guidelines, 15 Janeiro de 2009, Comissão Europeia, Bruxelas

CE (2017) My Region, My Europe, My Future. 7th Report on Economic, Social and Territorial Cohesion, European Commission, Brussels.

CE (2013) EVALSED - The resource for the Evaluation for Socio-Economic Development, September 2013, European Commission, Brussels.

CE (2019) A European Green Deal, European Commission, Brussels.

CE (2020) Circular Economy Action Plan: For a cleaner and more competitive Europe, European Commission, Brussels

CE (2021) Forging a climate-resilient Europe - the new EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change, European Commission, Brussels.

CE (2022) Cohesion in Europe towards 2050. 8th Report on Economic, Social and Territorial Cohesion, European Commission, Brussels.

DGEE (2013) Plano Nacional de Ação para a Eficiência Energética – 2013-2026 (PNAEE), Direção-Geral de Energia e Geologia, Lisboa.

DGEE (2015) Plano Nacional de Ação para as Energias Renováveis - PNAER 2020. Direção-Geral de Energia e Geologia. Lisboa

EIA (2021) Nuclear Explained: Nuclear Power and the Environment, Energy Information Administration, Washington

ESPON (2012) Territorial Impact Assessment of Policies and EU Directives. A practical guidance for policymakers and practitioners based on contributions from ESPON projects and the European Commission, ESPON, Luxembourg.

Fitzgerald, J. (2010) Emerald Cities: Urban Sustainability and Economic Development, Oxford University Press

Hanna, K. (ed.) (2022) Routledge Handbook of Environmental Impact Assessment, Routledge, New York

ICNF (2017) Plano Nacional de Defesa da Floresta contra Incêndios. Instituto de Conservação da Natureza e Florestas, Lisboa.

IPCC (2022) Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Geneva.

Lapeña, B., Wijnberg, K., Hulscher, S., Stein, A. (2010) Environmental impact assessment of offshore wind farms: a simulation-based approach, Journal of Applied Ecology, 47, 1110–1118.

Medeiros, E. (2016) Territorial Cohesion: An EU Concept, European Journal of Spatial Development, 60, http://www.nordregio.org/publications/territorial-cohesion-an-eu-concept

Medeiros, E. (2019) Spatial Planning, Territorial Development and Territorial Impact Assessment. Journal of Planning Literature, 34(2), 171–182

Medeiros, E. (2018) The Age of Sustainable Development, by Jeffrey D. Sachs, Journal of Geography, 118(1), 49–50.

Medeiros E. (ed.) (2020a) Territorial Impact Assessment. Advances in Spatial Science (The Regional Science Series). Springer, Cham.

Medeiros, E. (2020b) Portugal 2020. An effective policy platform to promote Sustainable Territorial Development?, Sustainability, 12(3), 1126.

PNEC (2019) Plano Nacional Energia e Clima 2021-2030. Portugal Energia. Lisboa.

Presidência do Conselho de Ministros (2013) Resolução do Conselho de Ministros nº 20/2013, Diário da República – (1º série; nº70)

Presidência do Conselho de Ministros (2015), Resolução do Conselho de Ministros nº 6-B/2015, Diário da República (1ºsérie, Nº24)

Presidência do Conselho de Ministros (2018), Resolução do Conselho de Ministros nº 55/2018, Diário da República (1º Série, Nº87)

Sachs, F. (2015) The age of sustainable development, Columbia University Press, New York

Sang-Hyo, K., Moon-Seock, C., Ho-Seong, M., Jung-Yeun, J. (2013) Environmental impact assessment and eco-friendly decision-making in civil structures, Journal of Environmental Management, 126, 105–112.

Ta-Kang, L., Haw-Yang, S., Chung-Ning, T. (2013) Environmental impact assessment of seawater desalination plant under the framework of integrated coastal management, Desalination, 326, 10–18.

UN (1987) Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future, United Nations, New York.

UN (2015) Integrating the Three Dimensions of Sustainable Development: A framework and tools, United Nations, New York.

UN (2018) United Nations Environment Programme: Annual Report 2018, United Nations, New York.

Published

2022-12-29

Issue

Section

Policy Brief