Aug. 30, 2008
State aid for environmental improvement has doubled from EUR 7 billion to EUR 14 billion in the past seven years, according to a European Commission (EC) report published in May. The EC pointed to the numbers as evidence of "more targeted" aid, and aims for further increases in aid under guidelines that took effect on April 1.The EC also noted a "marked improvement" in recovering state environmental aid that was illegally or improperly disbursed. On decisions taken in the 2000-07 period, the commission expects to reclaim an estimated EUR 9 billion. Of the 350 green state aid decisions taken between 2001 and 2007, all but 2 percent were to approve proposed payments.
