Region Östergötland
In order to support the local authorities in Östergötland and to make the most of the opportunities in the European Union, the Region Östergötland EU Office was first established in Brussels as East Sweden EU Office in 1996.
ID: 01394038816-02
Lobbying Activity
Response to Revision of EU rules on Gas
12 Apr 2022
Position regarding legislation that affects conditions to promote bioenergy
Bioenergy offers a range of benefits and potential for Östergötland
Östergötland is a prosperous region, with a thriving forestry industry and agricultural sector. Östergötland already has an established, efficient system for the production and use of biogas, which creates added value in the form of:
• reduced environmental impact from fossil fuels,
• reduced use of non-renewable resources for the production of fertilisers,
• increased energy security and local jobs.
Östgötland’s successful agricultural tradition shows that it is possible to produce arable crops with a high degree of efficiency and a minimum input of fossil fuels. Östergötland is also home to a thriving forestry sector, with a substantial production that contributes to gross biomass growth in the region while protecting biodiversity. The forest industry also has established logistics chains with a majority of production facilities in the county. The combination of the current production surplus and the existing infrastructure in the county creates favourable conditions for the development of bioenergy products with the potential to create environmental benefits in the region while promoting economic growth.
Considering the values that guide the current systems and the potential to further develop the production and use of biomass, Region Östergötland believes that four main principles should guide the region’s bioenergy policies and regulations:
1. Bioenergy shall contribute to a circular bioeconomy
Region Östergötland seeks to develop and support bioenergy that contributes to a circular bioeconomy. For Region Östergötland, a circular bioeconomy means a production system that is based on residual products and/or that a significant proportion of the raw material used is further processed into new products. In its assessment, the region has considered arguments concerning land use and the inherent conflict between energy and food production; however, the region considers that:
• The use of the terms “food-based” and “first-generation” bioenergy should be eliminated, as the raw material itself does not necessarily dictate what the overall benefits of bioenergy will be for the climate, environment and society as a whole.
2. Bioenergy shall be evaluated based on the benefit from a systems perspective
Region Östergötland considers that environmental, climate change and energy legislation should be developed with consideration for the climate and environmental benefits, as well as the socio-economic benefits. The region shall support a bioenergy industry that contributes to a circular bioeconomy and does not generate harm based on national or international environmental objectives, provided that the industry has good environmental performance from a systems perspective.
• By “good performance”, Region Östergötland means that the bioenergy industry makes a significant contribution to protecting the climate and is characterised by resource efficiency.
• By “systems perspective”, Region Östergötland means that a life cycle perspective is applied in the region’s bioenergy industry, including both upstream (including the indirect impact on land use – ILUC risk) and downstream effects (substitution). The life cycle perspective shall be applied to all products originating from biorefineries, such that both the environmental impacts and benefits are allocated to all products. The benefits of biomass extraction for nature conservation must be able to be attributed to the bioenergy activities.
Furthermore, Region Östergötland considers that the systems for reporting the performance of bioenergy, such as guarantees of origin and emissions trading, must be clear and transparent.
3. Policy tools should focus on promoting investments in renewable energy and discouraging the use of fossil fuels.
Region Östergötland considers that these policy tools must be simple, clear and long-term in nature and should c
Read full responseResponse to Review of the CO2 emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles
14 Mar 2022
Region Östergötland ser mycket positivt på Europeiska kommissionens ambition att minska
transportsektorns miljöpåverkan genom ökad användning av fossilfria drivmedel och teknik
som möjliggör emissionsfri drift. Kraftfulla åtgärder och en mångfald av lösningar kommer
att krävas för att nå ambitiösa åtaganden om minskad klimatpåverkan och ökad andel förnybar
energianvändning. Region Östergötland efterlyser ett helhets- och livscykelperspektiv från
Europeiska kommissionen. Bedömningen av om ett fordon är rent bör baseras på dess totala
effekt på klimatet. Det är av betydelse att synkronisera lagstiftningen så att drivmedel som
bedöms hållbara enligt förnybarhetsdirektivet (RED) även får räknas in som rena enligt detta
direktiv.
Read full responseResponse to Revision of the Renewable Energy Directive (EU) 2018/2001
2 Nov 2021
Östergötland is a prosperous region, with a thriving forestry industry and agricultural sector. These sectors combined creates favourable conditions for development of co-production of high value bioenergy products with the potential to create environmental benefits in the region, while promoting economic growth in a circular value chain.
Region Östergötland welcomes the European Commission Fit for 55 package that includes many important measures to fulfil the ambitious climate targets that have been adopted by the European Union. It is clear that net greenhouse gas removals in the European Union needs to be accelerated. We are grateful for the opportunity to comment on the revised directive on renewable energy rules and participate in the assessment on how these rules can contribute to a higher EU climate ambition and accelerate the transition.
Bioenergy shall contribute to a circular bioeconomy
Region Östergötland seeks to develop and support bioenergy that contributes to a circular bioeconomy. For Region Östergötland, a circular bioeconomy means a production system that is based on residual products and/or that a significant proportion of the raw material used is further processed into new products. There is substantial potential for further biorefineries where biomass is utilized in an efficient and circular way. We acknowledge that there are forms of bioenergy that are unsustainable. Region Östergötland therefore argues that Bioenergy shall have sustainable supply chains and does not support the production of bioenergy that has negative consequences and/or severely impacts on biodiversity.
EU environmental, climate change and energy legislation should be developed in consideration of climate and environmental as well as socio-economic benefits. Region Östergötland supports a bioenergy industry that contributes to a circular bioeconomy and does not harm national or international environmental objectives. The industry is required to have good environmental performance from a systems perspective. We therefore argue that:
• All sustainable alternatives should be treated in an equal way and valued based on their contributions to decreased CO2 emissions from a life cycle perspective, taking into account relevant environmental indicators, such as biodiversity, soil and water pollution and degradation.
• Policy measures for climate mitigation should be based on a technological neutrality.
• The raw material itself does not necessarily dictate what the overall benefits of bioenergy will be for the climate, environment and society as a whole. The use of the terms “food-based” and “first-generation” bioenergy should be eliminated.
• It is critical that the regulations supporting the directive do not include further limitations than the directive itself.
• All administrative requirements for renewable fuels should also apply to fossil fuels, for example, guarantees of origin, climate calculations and sustainability reporting. These guarantees of origin and emissions trading, must be clear and transparent.
• Policy tools should focus on promoting investments in renewable energy and discourage the use of fossil fuels
Region Östergötland considers that the Renewable Energy Directive must be simple, clear and long-term in nature. They need to create an incentive for increasing the proportion of energy from renewable resources used in the region, relative to that of fossil fuels.
Michael Cornell
Chairman Traffic- and Urban Planning Committee
Read full responseResponse to Guidance on REDII forest biomass sustainability criteria
26 Apr 2021
I Östergötland finns också ett livaktigt skogsbruk med god produktion och som både står för en bruttotillväxt av biomassa och värnar den biologiska mångfalden. Skogsindustrin har också etablerade logistikkedjor och flertalet produktionsanläggningar i länet. Det produktionsöverskott som finns idag, tillsammans med befintlig infrastruktur, ger sammantaget en god potential för utveckling av:
• Bioenergiprodukter som bidrar till miljönytta och ekonomisk tillväxt i regionen,
• Minskad miljöbelastning från fossila bränslen,
• Ökad energisäkerhet och lokala arbetstillfällen.
Region Östergötland anser att:
• Produktion av bioenergi som bidrar till en cirkulär bioekonomi ska utvecklas och stöttas.
• Produktion och användning av bioenergi ska värderas utifrån ett systemperspektiv och inte enbart efter råvarans ursprung. Fokus bör vara
hållbart uttag och effektiv användning av biomassa.
• Alla administrativa krav som ställs på förnybara bränslen ska även gälla fossila bränslen så att stränga hållbarhetsredovisningskrav för
förnybara bränslen inte blir en indirekt subvention av det fossila.
• Produktion av bioenergi som leder till betydande negativa effekter på skyddsvärda skogar inte ska stöttas.
Read full responseResponse to Climate change mitigation and adaptation taxonomy
18 Dec 2020
Region Östergötland (RÖ) the public authority for healthcare, regional development and public transport in Östergötland, Sweden, would like to emphasize that policy regarding biofuels for transport should to be holistic. This means taking into account climate- and environmental costs and benefits along the whole lifecycle of production, distribution and consumption, including indirect effects as land use change and benefits from co-production.
RÖ therefore expresses the following concerns on the current proposal for Taxonomy regulation:
4.13. Manufacture of biogas and biofuels for use in transport
Biofuels with high sustainability performance are important in the transition towards a fossil-free transport sector. Sustainability performance for biofuels depends on several different factors in the product’s lifecycle: feedstock origin, methods and co-production in the biorefineries, and end-use efficiency. The definition of green biofuels should take into consideration not only feedstock used or so-called generation of the biorefinery production methods, but the sustainability performance of the biofuel’s lifecycle as a whole. Hence, production of biofuels from food and feed crops should be included and evaluated on the same grounds as biofuels from, for example, forest biomass.
6.3. Urban, suburban and road passenger transport
In 4.13 biofuels are regarded to contribute substantially to climate change mitigation. Biofuels are used in internal combustion engine vehicles and will inevitably emit (renewable) carbon dioxide. Tailpipe emissions is therefore a poor measurement of passenger transport climate change mitigation. Furthermore, tailpipe emissions will not guarantee high climate performance for the energy used in battery- or hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles.
A Well-to-Wheels approach would acknowledge the total performance of transport systems, and is hence a more suitable evaluation basis.
View the considerations given to land-use and land-use change including indirect effects in the Directive and the proposal for the Delegated act at hand (the Proposal) as key pieces of legislation that despite their imperfection, might constitute a step in the right direction.
Julie Tran
Chairwoman
Committee of Transport and Urban Planning
Region Östergötland
Read full responseResponse to Revision of the Energy and Environmental Aid Guidelines (EEAG)
10 Dec 2020
Opinion on State aid for environmental protection and energy - revised guidelines
Region Östergötland (RÖ) the public authority for Healthcare, Regional Development and Public Transport in Östergötland, Sweden, would in the context of the revision of guidelines on State aid for environmental protection and energy like to draw the attention of the European Commission to the revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED 2), where “food-based” biofuels are recognized as a sustainable contribution at 2020 levels, or maximum 7% of the MS energy mix. Given the outcome of the revision of the RED Directive, as well as the important contribution from “food-based” biofuels at current levels, it is crucial that “crop-based” biofuels are clearly stated as eligible for exemption from the state aid rules in any revision following this consultation.
What we want:
In the current Guidelines article 113 and 121 stipulate an end to state aid for “crop-based” biofuels, by 2020. In any recast of the guidelines, Region Östergötland suggests that these time-limitations are removed so that “food-based” biofuels can continue to make its important contribution at current levels in the European energy mix.
Why is it important to us?
The European transport sector is still heavily dependent on fossil fuels. Tax exemptions facilitated a rapid introduction of biofuels in the Swedish market for transport fuels, leading to economic growth as well as reduced carbon emissions. Private and public actors in Östergötland have made great efforts to reduce fossil fuel dependency, creating advantageous conditions for production of first and second generation biofuels with outstanding environmental performance. Östergötland is regarded as world leading when it comes to biorefineries for sustainable production of crop based biofuels with minimal carbon footprint.
Read full responseResponse to Revision of the CO2 emission standards for cars and vans
23 Nov 2020
Region Östergötland ser mycket positivt på Europeiska kommissionens ambition att minska transportsektorns miljöpåverkan genom ökad användning av fossilfria drivmedel och teknik som möjliggör emissionsfri drift. Kraftfulla åtgärder och en mångfald av lösningar kommer att krävas för att nå ambitiösa åtaganden om minskad klimatpåverkan och ökad andel förnybar energianvändning.
Region Östergötland efterlyser ett helhets- och livscykelperspektiv från Europeiska kommissionen. Bedömningen av om ett fordon är rent bör baseras på dess totala effekt på klimatet. Det är av betydelse att synkronisera lagstiftningen så att drivmedel som bedöms hållbara enligt förnybarhetsdirektivet (RED) även får räknas in som rena enligt detta direktiv.
Read full responseResponse to High and low Indirect Land-Use Change (ILUC) - risks biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels
7 Mar 2019
Region Östergötland (RÖ) the public authority for healthcare, regional development and public transport in Östergötland, Sweden, would like to reinforce our message from the debate on the recast of the renewable energy directive (the Directive). RÖ want EU bioenergy-policy to be holistic and take into account climate- and environmental costs and benefits along the whole lifecycle of production, distribution and consumption, including indirect effects.
RÖ therefore view the considerations given to land-use and land-use change including indirect effects in the Directive and the proposal for the Delegated act at hand (the Proposal) as key pieces of legislation that despite their imperfection, might constitute a step in the right direction.
However, RÖ would like to express concern that the Proposal in its current form opens for biofuels on grounds that do not take into account environmental- or climate cost-benefit and RÖ will call on the legislators to veto any proposal containing such dispensations.
Read full response