STA DISCUSSION PAPER ON TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE EU TAXONOMY
A new STA Discussion Paper has been published, which is authored by Elena de la Peña (Deputy Director for Technical Affairs at the Spanish Road Association & Chair at Smart Mobility (TC1) STA), with contributions from José F. Papi (President of STA & CEO of Etelatär Innovation), Cesar Bartolomé (Director for Innovation at Spanish Institute of Cement and its Applications), Ricardo Lobo (R&D Manager at Aleatica) and Antonio Amengual (Director at Road Safety Division for Road Steel at Gonvarri Industries).
The Discussion Paper dives into the new EU Taxonomy Classification system and how it can steer Europe towards a more sustainable future for transport, with a focus on the infrastructures themselves.
The European authorities have created an ambitious new framework that serves as a classification tool. It encourages governments, financial institutions, and other EU economic operators and stakeholders to make more environmentally friendly decisions and meet the European Green Deal objectives, including the 2050 climate-neutrality target through pragmatic and hands-on guidelines and best practices.
The concept of taxonomy emerged from the need to establish a common language and define the term "sustainable" economic activities. The Discussion Paper addresses three out of the six taxonomy objectives, that are related to the transport infrastructure and how the sector is considered in terms of taxonomy. These are:
Climate change mitigation: setting goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to prevent the earth from overheating;
Climate change adaptation: solutions to reduce the risk of being affected negatively by present and future climate change;
Transition to a circular economy: all economic activities shall be environmentally sustainable by increasing, for instance, the use of recycled materials.
STA presents constructive suggestions and offers additional proposals for a more effective application of the EU Taxonomy Regulation. For instance, the Discussion Paper highlights the uncertainty derived from delays in implementing the European taxonomy due to delays in defining the technical criteria for specific activities.
Overall, STA welcomes the adoption of the EU Taxonomy standards as an effective tool for a climate-neutral Europe with more investments in sustainable projects and activities. However, the challenges that may arise, shall be taken into consideration. STA provides significant proposals for a more sustainable application of the EU taxonomy system for transportation infrastructure.