Currently, more than 80 cities are involved in the Environment Forum which is chaired by the City of Gothenburg. The Department of Environment, Public Order and Sports of the City of Leipzig has been actively involved in the Environment Forum for several years. The focus of the Forum is on the current and future EU environmental legislation and on the application of European law in the member states and cities.

A central objective of the work of the Environment Forum is to bring the concerns of cities regarding environmental protection into European politics. The work of the Environment Forum is currently focussing on the implementation of 6th EU Environment Action Programme. In the future, the Forum will stress its attention especially on "sustainable transport" and the application of the water management guidelines (EU Water Framework Directive) and, of course, combating climate change.

That is why the EUROCITIES welcomes the Commission Green Paper from June 2007 on "Adapting to climate change in Europe – options for EU action".
In June 2008 around 100 environment and transport experts from across Europe attended the EUROCITIES Conference on Climate Change and Mobility in London.

Another goal is the promotion of transnational cooperation projects between the member cities to further and promote the exchange of experience and transfer of good practice between European cities. Current projects of the Environment Forum include PRESUD, PLUS, INTEGAIRE and SPUR. A European thematic network on the topic of noise pollution (TENAN) and the continuation of the EMAS project, in which Leipzig was involved, are planned.

Currently, the forum consists of the following working groups:

• Clean Cities
  
• Climate Change – Air Quality – Energy Efficiency
  
• Environment and Health
  
• Greening the Local Economy
  
• Green Areas
  
• Noise Policy
  
• Sustainable Urban Water Management
  
• Waste Management
  

for matters relating to Leipzig's contributions in the forum:

Department of Environment, City of Leipzig

Head of department
Angela Zábojník

Phone: +49 0341 123-1611
E-Mail: azabojni@leipzig.de