The Commission has launched a Blueprint to Safeguard Europe's Water Resources, a strategy for ensuring that enough good quality water is available to meet the needs of people, the economy and the environment.

Concerning the environmental risk assessment for Part C, risk management, labelling, monitoring, information to the public and safeguard clause, this Directive should be a point of reference for GMOs as or in products authorised by other Community legislation which should therefore provide for a specific environmental risk assessment, to be carried out in accordance with the principles set out in Annex II and on the basis of information specified in Annex III without prejudice to additional requirements laid down by the Community legi ...[+++]slation mentioned above, and for requirements as regards risk management, labelling, monitoring as appropriate, information to the public and safeguard clause at least equivalent to that laid down in this Directive; the regulations to ensure that risk assessment and the requirements concerning risk management, labelling, monitoring as appropriate, information to the public and safeguard clause are equivalent to those laid down in this Directive should be implemented in cooperation with the relevant Commission services and national authorities responsible for the implementation of this Directive;

Concerning the environmental risk assessment for Part C, risk management, labelling, monitoring, information to the public and safeguard clause, this Directive should be a point of reference for GMOs as or in products authorised by other Community legislation which should therefore provide for a specific environmental risk assessment, to be carried out in accordance with the principles set out in Annex II and on the basis of information specified in Annex III without prejudice to additional requirements laid down by the Community legi ...[+++]slation mentioned above, and for requirements as regards risk management, labelling, monitoring as appropriate, information to the public and safeguard clause at least equivalent to that laid down in this Directive;

(b) Paragraph (iii) is replaced by the following:"(iii) to establish a repository of information on the environment using as a main element a continuously updated European directory of information, to record, collate and assess data on the state of the environment, to draw up expert reports on the quality, sensitivity and pressures on the environment within the territory of the Community, to provide uniform assessment criteria for environmental data to be applied in all Member States.

(xi) to ensure the broad dissemination of reliable environmental information in the official languages of the European Union, wherever possible, to the general public and, to this end, to promote the use of new telematics technology for this purpose; (xii) to support the Commission in the process of exchange of information and development of Environmental Impact Assessments; (xiii) to assist the Commission in the diffusion of information on environmental research which has a policy relevance; (xiv) to use the repository of information on the environment to ensure freedom of access to validated information on the environment, in accordanc ...[+++]e with the requirements set out in Council Directive 90/313/EEC".

At the close of its debate the Council adopted the following conclusions: "THE COUNCIL, Conscious of the major importance of wetlands in the Community, notably on account of the part they play in maintaining biodiversity and as a basis for specific economic activities; Noting the disappearance of a large number of such wetlands in the Community owing to the developments that have taken place there and their non-sustainable exploitation; Noting the continuing degradation of such areas caused by the activities pursued within them or by external pollution spread by the hydrographic network or other carriers of pollution; Realizing that: - the protection of wetlands corresponds to the objectives of the fifth Community ...[+++]Environmental Action Programme [1] and to the Community's international commitments, particularly under the Convention on Biological Diversity, and also to Member States' commitments under the Ramsar Convention; - the Community has progressed in the protection of wetlands through legislation relating to environmental protection (Birds Directive [2] and Habitats Directive [3] , water quality, treatment of waste, etc.) and a series of programmes (ENVIREG, MEDSPA, LIFE, agri-environmental measures, etc.).