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Strategia dell’Unione europea per la regione alpina

ovvero come sacrificare la vera regione alpina al progetto Torino-Lione

commenti di PresidioEuropa No TAV

 

Stratégie de l’Union européenne pour la région alpine

ou comment sacrifier la vraie région alpine au projet Lyon-Lyon

commentaires de PresidioEuropa No TAV

 

A European union strategy for the Alpine region
or how sacrificing the true alpine region to the Turin-Lyon project
comments of PresidioEuropa No TAV

1. – Conclusione e proposta

La vera regione alpina europea[1] sarà sacrificata alla Torino-Lione.

Possiamo affermarlo sulla base della nostra esperienza nell’opposizione al progetto per la costruzione di una nuova galleria ferroviaria alpina sulla già esistente linea Torino-Lione, progetto promosso dalla Commissione Europea e co-finanziato dalla UE.

Ora, all’interno della procedura legislativa in corso, esprimiamo alcune osservazioni critiche ai MEPs che hanno visitato la Val Susa il 2  ottobre 2015 e che sono chiamati a formulare pareri come relatori effettivi o relatori ombra al documento Una Strategia dell’Unione europea per la Regione Alpina COM(2015)366 final.

Crediamo fortemente che sia opportuno – anche in questa circostanza – che le forze politiche, che affermano di sostenere l’opposizione alla Torino-Lione, utilizzino con determinazione argomenti “contro retorici” rispetto a quelli che la Commissione Europea ha espresso per inserire la Torino-Lione all’interno della strategia alpina,  senza peraltro citarla espressamente.

Se i giochi paiono ormai fatti, riteniamo che non sia mai troppo tardi per affermare e diffondere una visione alternativa.

Come dettagliatamente spiegato nel paragrafo 4 di questa relazione, proponiamo che il progetto Torino-Lione che, seppure non citato esplicitamente nei documenti della Commissione europea relativamente a questa procedura, sia richiamato nei pareri dei relatori effettivi e ombra che varie Commissioni del Parlamento europeo forniranno alla Commissione europea.

Nel paragrafo 6. di pagina 7 sono indicati gli emendamenti che proponiamo.

Restiamo a disposizione per ogni chiarimento e ringraziamo per la collaborazione.

2. – Il contesto della strategia UE per la regione alpina

La Commissione Europea[2] ha presentato il 28 luglio 2015 la sua “Strategia UE per la regione alpina” attraverso tre documenti:

• COM(2015)366 final http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/cooperate/alpine/eusalp_communicationtion_it.pdf  (12 p.)
• Working Document http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/cooperate/alpine/eusalp_action_plan.pdf  (62 p.)
• e in una sintesi 2015/2324(INI) – 28/07/2015 Documento di base non legislativo[3] (2 p.).

La Commissione europea ha preparato la strategia dopo aver svolto una consultazione pubblica tra il 16 luglio e il 15 ottobre 2014[4] e un evento a Milano nel mese di dicembre 2014.

Il movimento No TAV non ha partecipato alla consultazione sulla regione alpina lanciata della Commissione Europea nel luglio 2014 non essendone al corrente.

E’ interessante la lettura del documento “Public Consultation Summary Report”[5] che contiene le osservazioni che avrebbero dovuto orientare la strategia europea per la regione alpina. A pagina 3 troviamo questa apprezzabile affermazione:

Based on the results of the public consultation, and in particular the responses given to the open-ended question regarding the main topics to be addressed by the strategy, the five most relevant environmental topics identified by the public consultation are:

-          nature and biodiversity,

-          cultural heritage,

-          climate change,

-          water,

-          and energy.

3. – Procedura legislativa

Registriamo che nell’ambito della procedura 2015/2324(INI)[6] la Commissione Sviluppo Regionale – REGI fornirà il suo parere attraverso la relatrice Mercedes Bresso, MEP  fortemente motivata a sostenere il progetto della nuova galleria ferroviaria alpina sulla linea tra Torino e Lione.

REGI ha chiesto ad altre Commissioni parlamentari il loro parere. La Commissione Trasporti TRAN ha nominato relatrice la MEP Daniela Aiuto. Al fondo è riportata la bozza di parere redatta dalla MEP Daniela Aiuto di TRAN il 26 gennaio 2016.

4. – Commenti alla Strategia dell’UE per la regione alpina

Data la nostra opposizione al progetto sostenuto dalla Commissione Europea per la costruzione di una nuova galleria ferroviaria alpina sulla linea Torino-Lione, co-finanziata dall’UE, ci limitiamo a fare alcune osservazioni ai documenti della Commissione tenendo conto dell’ingombrante presenza di questo progetto nella regione alpina occidentale.

Nel documento preparatorio[7] di 62 pagine (Working Document) al Documento COM(2015) 366 final ritroviamo argomenti interessanti lo sviluppo della regione alpina che vengono tuttavia negati con la contemporanea promozione del progetto della Torino-Lione.

Ad esempio, è scritto che la Strategia dell’UE per la regione alpina:

a) Intende migliorare la connettività, cfr. pag. 21:

including public transport and high-speed internet,

ma la Torino-Lione va in direzione opposta, trattandosi di una pesante linea ferroviaria internazionale,

b) Vuole difendere l’ambiente e in particolare l’acqua, cfr. pag. 31:

Important parts of the natural richness of the Alps are the rivers, lakes and glaciers, which make this Region the ‘water tower’ of Europe

ma la Torino-Lione produce un risultato opposto, dato che perforare le montagne provoca la perdita definitiva ed irreversibile di ingenti quantitativi d’acqua, elemento vitale delle montagne,

c) Vuole esaltare i modelli di governance locale, dal basso, transfrontalieri, cfr. pag. 52:

The Commission will support this multilevel governance approach, but the success of the approach depends on the commitment of key stakeholders and partners (including different ministries and decision-making levels within each State/Region, national, regional and local authorities, members of parliaments (regional, national and European), economic and social actors, civil society, academia, and NGOs)

ma includere in questa strategia il progetto Torino-Lione[8] significa affermare politiche centraliste, antidemocratiche, top-down,

d) Vuole favorire le PMI, cfr. pag. 6 del Documento COM(2015)366 final:

Le PMI costituiscono una parte importante dell’economia e del mercato del lavoro nella Regione alpina.

ma il progetto Torino-Lione serve a “saltare” le Alpi annullandone le specificità e non favorisce le PMI locali che saranno tagliate fuori proprio dalla realizzazione di quest’opera,

e) A pag. 22 del documento preparatorio è detto correttamente:

Regional characteristics concerning the proposed action

The geomorphology of the Alpine Region greatly affects the construction and maintenance of transport infrastructures. At the same time, transport infrastructures have a significant impact on landscape and the environment, which are the core resources of the Alpine Region. The search for a balance between transport infrastructures and the preservation of the territory has been identified for decades as a major challenge and an objective of the international community of States and Regions sharing the Alpine Region. To this end, among other things, an international treaty (the Alpine Convention) has been equipped with a specific protocol on transport[9], adopted in 2000 and ratified also by the EU in 2013 as a significant contribution to the greening of transport policy in the core Alpine Region. This protocol aims at reducing the negative effects of and risks posed by intra-Alpine and transalpine transport to a level which is not harmful to people and the environment, inter alia, by transferring an increasing amount of transport, especially freight transport, to railways as well as ensuring movement of intra-Alpine and transalpine transport at economically bearable costs by increasing the efficiency of transport systems and promoting modes of transport which are more environmentally friendly and more economic in terms of natural resources.

ma queste affermazioni sono contraddette in gran parte dalla promozione del progetto Torino-Lione da parte della Commissione Europea, di Francia e Italia, tutti firmatari della Convenzione per le Alpi.

f) Nel documento preparatorio è affermato correttamente a pag. 21:

Physical transport of passengers and goods is not the only relevant dimension in a society increasingly more dependent on virtual connections,

ma poi si contraddice in quanto fa riferimento ai collegamenti TEN-T che devono prioritariamente rimuovere colli di bottiglia e realizzare le linee mancanti (la Torino Lione non è né un collo di bottiglia né una linea mancante, ma è una linea esistente e fortemente sottoutilizzata):

This action aims to promote inter-modality and interoperability in passenger and freight transport, in particular by removing infrastructure bottlenecks, bridging missing links.

g) Il documento COM(2015) 366 final riporta a pagina 6, ma in forma meno evidente quanto scritto nel documento preparatorio di cui al paragrafo f), dato che non riprende questa frase:

in particular by removing infrastructure bottlenecks, bridging missing links

ma quanto segue:

Azione 4: Promuovere l’intermodalità e l’interoperabilità del trasporto di passeggeri e di merci

L’obiettivo principale di ridurre l’impatto ambientale dei trasporti transalpini deve essere associato ad una buona connettività a livello locale, in modo da assicurare uno sviluppo economico e demografico equilibrato dell’intera Regione. Oltre ad agevolare il conseguimento degli obiettivi della rete transeuropea di trasporto, nonché di progetti analoghi, trasferendo traffico dalla strada alla ferrovia, sono di vitale importanza misure complementari volte ad assicurare che i collegamenti della rete transeuropea di trasporto (compresi quelli transfrontalieri) siano anche di giovamento alla Regione.

La citazione “i collegamenti della rete transeuropea di trasporto (compresi quelli transfrontalieri)” richiama direttamente il progetto Torino-Lione.

E’ necessario ricordare che il progetto della Torino-Lione è finanziato dalla UE in quanto i promotori affermano che possiede le caratteristiche previste dai Regolamenti europei CEF e TEN-T che precisano le caratteristiche che debbono possedere i progetti ferroviari promossi dalla Commissione europea[10], ossia:

a. devono essere transfrontalieri, (ovvio, N.d.R.)

b. deve essere constatata la presenza di collegamenti ferroviari mancanti (missing links)

c. devono essere presenti delle strozzature sulle linee ferroviarie esistenti (infrastructure bottlenecks)

La Commissione Europea, per bocca del suo rappresentante e Coordinatore  sig. L. J. Brinkhorst, ha più volte affermato[11], per ribadire l’indispensabilità della Torino-Lione, che le maggiori criticità da superare nel Corridoio Mediterraneo sono:

- la mancanza di un collegamento ferroviario tra Torino e Lione,

- la strozzatura nel nodo ferroviario di Torino.

La prima affermazione del sig. Brinkhorst è falsa e fuorviante in quanto fa credere ai decisori europei che tra le città di Torino e Lione – in particolare nel tratto alpino – non esista una linea ferroviaria.

Nella seconda Brinkhorst indica che la strozzatura si trova nella città di Torino, mentre questa criticità l’aveva sempre indicata nei suoi rapporti precedenti nella tratta alpina della linea, dove si trova l’attuale tunnel del Fréjus, nel quale transitano da anni i treni TGV da Parigi a Milano. Ciò per convincere ulteriormente i decisori europei dell’inesistenza di una linea ferroviaria che attraversa in galleria le Alpi su questo itinerario.

Di conseguenza, chiediamo che sia cancellato nel parere di TRAN alla Commissione REGI il punto:

1. takes note of the Commission’s action plan to improve the sustainability of transport connectivity within and to the Region and promote inter-modality and interoperability in passenger and freight transport;

in quanto sostiene lo sviluppo della rete TEN-T (e quindi della Torino-Lione), dato che fa preciso riferimento al paragrafo di pag. 6 del documento COM(2015) 366 final (cfr. il punto g di questa relazione) e alla sintesi:

2015/2324(INI) – 28/07/2015 Non-legislative basic document PURPOSE: to present an EU Strategy for the Alpine Region http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/summary.do?id=1412386&t=d&l=en

che afferma:

2) Sustainable internal and external accessibility: the aim is to improve the sustainability of transport connectivity within the region and with the rest of Europe by:

• promoting inter-modality and interoperability in passengers and freight transport (facilitating the achievement of the trans-European transport network’s objectives and those of similar projects to shift traffic from road to rail);

Occorre invece precisare nel parere TRAN che l’itinerario ferroviario alpino tra Torino e Lione non presenta le caratteristiche richieste dai Regolamenti CEF e TEN-T per giustificare il finanziamento europeo alla costruzione di una nuova linea ferroviaria tra Torino e Lione, in quanto:

- non esistono sull’itinerario alpino strozzature (infrastructure bottlenecks)

- e non vi è la necessità di realizzare le linee mancanti (bridging missing links) sullo stesso itinerario data la presenza di una linea ferroviaria ammodernata con una capacità utilizzata al 15% e quindi in grado di rispondere alla domanda di traffico merci e passeggeri per decine di anni a venire.

5. – La “curiosa” geografia della regione alpina – EUSALP

Questo ultimo paragrafo dimostra ancora una volta quanto la Commissione Europea e i suoi partner lavorino “in grande”: più si spende più qualcuno guadagna !

L’area geografica della Strategia Alpina considerata dalla Commissione europea è stata estesa enormemente rispetto a quella della Convenzione delle Alpi[12],  ratificata anche dall’Unione europea, annettendo grandi aree di pianura, con questa giustificazione, cfr. COM(2015)366 final pag. 2:

L’area geografica che si propone di far rientrare nella strategia macroregionale è particolarmente idonea ai fini dello sviluppo sostenibile della Regione alpina, della promozione della crescita in Europa e della solidarietà reciproca tra i territori montuosi e quelli peri-alpini.

Questa retorica di “solidarietà” è stata costruita per poter affermare che moltissime delle politiche “di pianura” della Commissione europea potranno essere considerate anche a favore della Regione Alpina; in questo modo sarà più difficile che l’Unione europea possa adottare vere politiche alpine rispettose dei principi della Convenzione delle Alpi.

Nel documento preparatorio di 62 pagine, è scritto a pagina 22:

While the transport protocol of the Alpine Convention significantly contributes to the objective of making transport in the Alpine Region more sustainable, this Treaty (Alpine Convention) is only applicable in the mountainous part of the Alpine Region, while the location of the Alpine Region as an important transit area requires a concerted action extending beyond the core mountainous region: this is why efficient and sustainable transport through the Alpine Region is an issue of concern at an EU-wide scale and as such several cross-border or national infrastructure projects belonging to TEN-T networks are located in the Alpine Region.

In questo stesso paragrafo è citata la rete TEN-T che non serve all’area alpina, ma la attraversa solamente. Questo è l’ennesima prova che la Commissione Europea non perde l’occasione di sostenere la costosissima e in gran parte inutile rete TEN-T, invece di concentrasi prioritariamente sulla rete esistente e i progetti RFC – Rail Freight Corridors.[13]

Nella mappa a pagina 62 del documento preparatorio risulta evidente la sproporzione tra l’area alpina EUSALP delimitata dal confine blu http://www.alpine-region.eu/ (European Union Strategy for the ALPine Region)[14] e quella della Convenzione Alpina dal confine verde[15]. Per creare maggiore confusione, la Commissione europea indica nella sua mappa anche lo Spazio Alpino (Alpine Space)[16], programma non più attivo.

Questo artificioso allargamento della superficie della regione Alpina permetterà di promuovere l’allocazione delle risorse per la Regione Alpina (come intesa dalla Convenzione delle Alpi) verso territori di pianura, dato che saranno considerati “alpini”.

A maggior chiarimento, l’area “Alpina” definita EUSALP comprende, iniziando la lettura della mappa da sinistra in basso e proseguendo in senso orario:

-         la Francia meridionale, con la città di Marsiglia sul golfo del Leone,

-         la Francia orientale con le città di Lione e Belfort,

-         la Germania con le città di Friburgo e Karlsruhe (poco a sud di Francoforte),

-         la Germania con la Baviera settentrionale,

-         la Germania con la Baviera meridionale,

-         l’Austria integralmente, con Vienna e fino al confine con la Repubblica Ceca,

-         l’Italia da Trieste fino a Torino e al confine con la Francia, attraverso tutta la pianura padana, il  Friuli Venezia – Giulia, il Veneto, la Lombardia, il Piemonte, la Liguria da La Spezia a Genova e Ventimiglia,

-         tutta la Svizzera che non è Stato Membro dell’UE.

Considerando solo gli Stati Membri della UE (e non la Svizzera che non ne fa parte), l’area “Alpina” EUSALP contiene circa 72 milioni di persone (il 14,4% della popolazione della UE)[17], mentre i residenti della UE all’interno del perimetro della Convenzione delle Alpi sono solo circa 6 milioni (l’1,2% della popolazione dell’UE).

 6. – Bozza di Parere

Sulla base di quanto precede, proponiamo questa nuova redazione di parere.

2015/2324(INI) 26/01/2016 – Bozza di PARERE di Daniela Aiuto

PA\1084344IT.doc   PE575.341<

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+COMPARL+PE-575.341+01+DOC+WORD+V0//IT&language=IT

SUGGERIMENTI

La commissione per i trasporti e il turismo invita la commissione per lo sviluppo regionale, competente per il merito, a includere nella proposta di risoluzione che approverà i seguenti suggerimenti:

A.    considerando che la regione alpina rappresenta per i trasporti europei una sfida importante, essendo caratterizzata da una bassa densità di popolazione e da tipologie di connessioni e accessibilità ai servizi del tutto particolari;

B.    considerando che la particolare geomorfologia del territorio non deve essere considerata esclusivamente un ostacolo alla connettività, bensì un’opportunità per coniugare il sistema dei trasporti con la tutela del patrimonio naturale e culturale;

C.    considerando che le risorse finanziarie dovrebbero essere investite principalmente nello sviluppo della connettività locale, nella valorizzazione dei piccoli centri urbani, nel favorire l’accessibilità alle strutture turistiche e nel garantire servizi sanitari essenziali;

1.     prende atto del piano d’azione della Commissione, che è inteso a migliorare la sostenibilità della connettività dei trasporti nella regione e verso di essa, nonché a promuovere l’interoperabilità del trasporto di passeggeri e di merci;

2.     invita la Commissione e gli Stati membri a promuovere prioritariamente, nella regione alpina, una politica di sviluppo delle infrastrutture di trasporto sostenibile, inclusiva e non invasiva per il territorio, preservando quest’ultimo e valorizzandolo dal punto di vista turistico, della coesione sociale e dello sviluppo regionale;

3.     sottolinea che la connettività e l’accessibilità della regione dovrebbero essere migliorate e promosse assicurando il rispetto dell’ambiente, la protezione delle risorse idriche e la partecipazione delle popolazioni locali, impegnando pienamente gli attori politici a livello regionale e locale nonché promuovendo referendum;

4.     ritiene che l’accessibilità alle TIC debba essere incrementata fornendo servizi in modo più rapido ed efficace e incentivando il telelavoro, al fine di ridurre il numero degli spostamenti e le relative emissioni inquinanti;

5.   invita gli Stati membri a investire nelle infrastrutture del turismo e ad agevolare un accesso sostenibile alle destinazioni turistiche, ad esempio le stazioni sciistiche, attraverso il trasporto pubblico.

ALLEGATI

La Mappa EUSALP

2015/2324(INI) – 28/07/2015 Document de base non législatif

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/summary.do?id=1412386&t=d&l=fr

PURPOSE: to present an EU Strategy for the Alpine Region.

BACKGROUND: the Alpine Region is one of the richest areas in the world and among the economically most dynamic, innovative and competitive areas in Europe. However, it also faces important challenges requiring a joint response:

• economic globalisation that requires the territory to distinguish itself as competitive and innovative;
• demographic trends, characterised particularly by the combined effects of ageing, low population density in the mountain areas and new migration models;
• high vulnerability to climate change and its foreseeable effects on the environment,
• biodiversity and the living conditions of its inhabitants;
• the energy challenge in managing and meeting demand sustainably, securely and affordably;
• its specific geographical position in Europe, as a transit region;
• a high degree of seasonality, especially in some touristic areas.

The European Council of 19 and 20 December 2013 invited the Commission, working with Member States, to draw up an EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP) by June 2015, building on the solid background of cooperation in the region. The Strategy will affect around 80 million people living 48 regions (map in Annex) in seven countries, of which five are EU Member States (Austria, France, Germany, Italy and Slovenia) and two are non-EU countries (Liechtenstein and Switzerland), being a macro-regional strategy for the sustainable development of the Alpine Region.

CONTENT : the Strategy will respond to the challenges above by covering the following thematic policy areas:

1. Fair access to job opportunities, building on the high competitiveness of the Region;

2. Sustainable internal and external accessibility;

3. A more inclusive environmental framework and renewable and reliable energy solutions for the future; and a crosscutting objective, building a sound macro-regional governance model for the region to improve cooperation and the coordination of action.

Within each objective, a number of actions have been identified. These support EU policy objectives, including those with a territorial dimension.

1) Fair access to job opportunities: this objective focuses on improving the competitiveness, prosperity and cohesion of the Alpine region. The main actions are:

• develop an effective research and innovation ecosystem by stressing a system focusing on thematic issues of particular relevance to the region (such as agriculture and forestry, tourism, etc.);
• increase the economic potential of strategic sectors by supporting SMEs to maintain innovativeness and preserve a competitive edge by ensuring sustainable development (agriculture and forestry sector-based products and services);
• improve the adequacy of labour market education and training in strategic sectors by improving the right competences, and helping to cope with ‘brain drain’ in remote areas that suffer from depopulation.

2) Sustainable internal and external accessibility: the aim is to improve the sustainability of transport connectivity within the region and with the rest of Europe by:

• promoting inter-modality and interoperability in passengers and freight transport (facilitating the achievement of the trans-European transport network’s objectives and those of similar projects to shift traffic from road to rail);
• connecting people electronically and promote accessibility to public services (particularly land-based broadband connections).

3) A more inclusive environmental framework and renewable and reliable energy solutions for the future: this aims to:

• preserve the environmental heritage of the Alps;
• help the region benefit from its resources in various ways, including energy; and
• cope with the changes predicted due to climate change, including preventing major natural risks.

The main actions are:

• preserve and valorise natural resources, including water and cultural resources;
• develop ecological connectivity in the whole EUSALP territory (promotion of ecological corridors and green infrastructure, including in unprotected areas);
• improve risk management as regards climate change, and carry out a comprehensive vulnerability assessment of the sectors and systems likely to be affected and developing a regional strategy on adapting to climate change;
• make the territory a model region for energy efficiency and renewable energy.

A macro-regional governance model: implementing the Strategy requires:

• setting up an efficient governance model involving the actors taking part in implementation and strengthening cooperation and the coordination among other relevant institutions and stakeholders in the region; and,
• changing the decision-making process, avoiding fragmented governance, increasing knowledge sharing and coordination, both between different levels of government and across local government organisations at the same level.

Experience to date with macro-regional strategies shows that streamlined governance mechanisms are crucial for effective implementation. Sound governance requires that roles be clearly defined at an early stage: how and by whom the Strategy will be implemented, and how and by whom joint actions will be initiated and financed. Governance must have both a political and operational dimension, with political leadership and ownership, coordination; and implementation. The Commission will act as an independent facilitator.

Financing: as the Strategy does not have its own financing, it will mainly be implemented by mobilising and aligning existing EU and national funding relevant to the objectives and actions. In particular, relevant country-specific, cross-border and transnational programmes from the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) for 2014-2020 can provide significant resources and a wide range of tools and technical options to support the Strategy. The trans-national Alpine Space programme will provide financial support for developing the governance arrangements for the Strategy.

The Strategy should focus on actions to identify supra-national priorities when choosing investment projects that could benefit from joint programming and cross-border coordination in the region.

Other EU funds and instruments relevant to the Strategy’s objectives are available, notably with:

• Horizon 2020 (for all objectives);
• the COSME programme (for objective 1);
• the Connecting Europe Facility (for objective 2) and
• the LIFE programme (for objective 3).

Other funding is also available, particularly from the European Investment Bank.

A strong monitoring and evaluation system will be needed to check whether implementation of the Strategy is on track.

2015/2324(INI) – 28/07/2015 Document de base non législatif

Summary content

OBJECTIF : présentation d’une stratégie de l’Union européenne pour la région alpine.

CONTEXTE : la région alpine est l’une des régions les plus dynamiques, les plus innovantes et les plus compétitives d’Europe sur le plan économique. Toutefois, elle fait face à d’importants défis auxquels il convient de répondre de manière commune:

• la mondialisation de l’économie, qui lui impose de se distinguer en tant que région compétitive et innovante;
• les tendances démographiques, qui se caractérisent notamment par les effets combinés du vieillissement de la population, de la faible densité de population dans les zones de montagne et des nouveaux modèles de migration;
• une forte vulnérabilité au changement climatique et à ses effets prévisibles sur l’environnement, la biodiversité et les conditions de vie de ses habitants;
• le défi énergétique, qui consiste à gérer la demande et à y répondre de manière durable, en toute sécurité et à un coût abordable;
• sa position géographique particulière en Europe, qui en fait une région de transit;
• un degré élevé de saisonnalité, en particulier dans certaines zones touristiques.

Le Conseil européen des 19 et 20 décembre 2013 a invité la Commission à établir, en collaboration avec les États membres, une stratégie de l’Union européenne pour la région alpine (EUSALP) d’ici à juin 2015, sur la base de la longue expérience en matière de coopération dans la région. Cette stratégie aura une incidence sur environ 80 millions de personnes vivant dans 48 régions, dans 7 pays, dont 5 sont des États membres de l’Union (Allemagne, France, Italie, Autriche et Slovénie) et 2, des pays tiers (Liechtenstein et Suisse), dans le cadre d’une vision macro-régionale de développement durable de la région alpine.

CONTENU : la stratégie alpine répondrait à l’ensemble des défis susmentionnés dans le cadre d’une tripe approche thématique:

1. un accès équitable à l’emploi, en s’appuyant sur la forte compétitivité de la région;
2. une accessibilité interne et externe durable;
3. un cadre environnemental plus inclusif et des solutions énergétiques renouvelables et fiables pour l’avenir;

ainsi qu’autour d’un objectif transversal, qui fonde un modèle de gouvernance macrorégionale solide pour la région afin d’améliorer la coopération et la coordination des actions.

Pour chaque objectif, un certain nombre d’actions ont été définies. Ces actions poursuivent les objectifs stratégiques de l’Union, y compris ceux qui ont une dimension territoriale.

1) accès équitable à l’emploi : cet objectif est axé sur l’amélioration de la compétitivité, de la prospérité et de la cohésion de la région alpine. Dans ce contexte, les principales actions de la stratégie seraient les suivantes:

• créer un véritable écosystème d’innovation et de recherche en mettant l’accent sur des questions thématiques présentant un intérêt particulier pour la région (l’agriculture et la sylviculture, le tourisme, par exemple);
• accroître le potentiel économique des secteurs stratégiques en s’appuyant sur un tissu de PME particulièrement dynamique et capable de développement la capacité d’innovation et de compétitivité de la région (produits et services des secteurs de l’agriculture et de la sylviculture, notamment);
• mettre l’éducation et la formation en adéquation avec le marché du travail dans les secteurs stratégiques en améliorant l’accès aux formations et en évitant la «fuite des cerveaux» dans les régions éloignées qui connaissent un exode rural.

2) accessibilité interne et externe durable : l’objectif serait de renforcer la durabilité de la connectivité des transports au sein de la région et avec le reste de l’Europe en :

• promouvant l’intermodalité et l’interopérabilité du transport de passagers et de marchandises (mesures destinées à faciliter la réalisation des objectifs du réseau de transport transeuropéen et ceux de projets similaires consistant à déplacer le trafic de la route vers le rail);
• assurant la connexion électronique entre les personnes et en facilitant l’accès aux services publics (renforcement des connexions à haut débit  notamment).

3) cadre environnemental plus inclusif et solutions énergétiques renouvelables et fiables pour l’avenir : pour cet objectif, il est prévu de:

• préserver le patrimoine environnemental de l’espace alpin;
• aider la région à jouir de ses ressources, y compris l’énergie, de différentes manières;
• lui permettre de s’adapter aux variations prévues en raison du changement climatique, notamment par la prévention des risques naturels de grande ampleur.

Les principales mesures prévues seraient les suivantes:

• préserver et valoriser les ressources naturelles, y compris l’eau, ainsi que les ressources culturelles;
• développer la connectivité écologique sur l’ensemble du territoire de la région alpine (conservation de la diversité biologique et promotion de corridors écologiques dans les zones non protégées);
• améliorer la gestion des risques par une évaluation complète de la vulnérabilité des secteurs et des systèmes susceptibles d’être touchés par le changement climatique;
• faire de la région un modèle en termes d’efficacité énergétique et d’énergies renouvelables.

Gouvernance macro-régionale alpine : la mise en œuvre de la stratégie exige:

• la mise en place d’un modèle de gouvernance faisant intervenir les acteurs participant à la mise en œuvre et au renforcement de la coopération et de la coordination entre les autres parties prenantes et les institutions pertinentes dans la région;
• la modification du processus décisionnel, en évitant la fragmentation de la gouvernance et en améliorant l’échange de connaissances et la coordination, à la fois entre les différents niveaux de gouvernement et entre les organisations de gouvernement local d’un même niveau.

L’expérience acquise en matière de stratégie macro-régionale montre que des mécanismes de gouvernance intégrés sont essentiels à une mise en œuvre efficace même si la gouvernance transfrontalière reste difficile à mettre en place. Une bonne gouvernance exige que les rôles soient clairement définis à un stade précoce en s’attachant à savoir quelles actions sont financées et à quel niveau. La gouvernance doit donc revêtir une dimension à la fois politique et opérationnelle en favorisant l’appropriation, la coordination et la mise en œuvre des actions par toutes les parties prenantes. À cet égard, la Commission n’interviendrait qu’en tant que facilitateur indépendant.

Financement : étant donné que la stratégie ne dispose pas de financement propre, elle sera essentiellement mise en œuvre à travers la mobilisation et l’harmonisation des financements européens et nationaux existants en rapport avec les objectifs et actions concernés.

En particulier, les programmes spécifiques à chaque pays, les programmes transfrontaliers et transnationaux des Fonds structurels et d’investissement européens (Fonds ESI) pour la période 2014-2020 devraient fournir des ressources importantes ainsi qu’un large éventail d’instruments et d’options techniques à l’appui de la stratégie. Le programme transnational «Espace alpin» apporterait une aide financière pour définir les modalités de gouvernance de la stratégie.

La stratégie devrait mettre l’accent sur des actions visant à établir les priorités supranationales dans le choix des projets d’investissements qui pourraient bénéficier d’une programmation conjointe et d’une coordination transfrontalière dans la région.

D’autres fonds et instruments de l’Union pourraient être mobilisés outre les Fonds ESI:

• Horizon 2020 (pour tous les objectifs);
• COSME (pour l’objectif 1);
• le mécanisme pour l’interconnexion en Europe (pour l’objectif 2) et
• le programme LIFE (pour l’objectif 3).

D’autres moyens de financement sont également disponibles, notamment des prêts de la BEI.

L’ensemble de la stratégie ferait en outre l’objet d’un suivi et d’une évaluation adéquats pour s’assurer de sa bonne mise en œuvre.

Risultati della Consultazione effettuata tra il 16 luglio e il 15 ottobre 2014

http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/newsroom/consultations/eusalp/

Final Results

The consultation process emphasised that tackling shared challenges and opportunities requires coherent, integrated and coordinated approaches on the part of the States and Regions involved. Neither unilateral national approaches nor sector-based approaches would suffice.

Respondents of different capacities participated in the public consultation of the EUSALP. In particular private persons and representatives from the civil society responded to the survey, followed by public authorities. In total 330 contributions were received of which 198 on the website of the Commission and 129 on the Italian page of the EUSALP-website. the latter as follows: 54 in English, 64 in German, 23 in French, 51 in Italian, and eight in Slovenian. Residents of different countries participated in the consultation, including both residents of the countries in the Alpine Region, as well as other EU member states. All in all, 26 contributions came from Austria, five from Belgium, 38 from France, 44 from Germany, 194 from Italy, one from Latvia, four from Liechtenstein, one from the Netherlands, ten from Slovenia and eight from Switzerland.

PUBLIC CONSULTATION – SUMMARY REPORT

The on-line public consultation was structured around a set of open questions regarding the Strategy in the four Alpine languages (French, German, Italian and Slovenian) as well as in English. The results of the consultation were published on the website of DG Regional Policy. A large high-level stakeholder conference took place in Milan on 1-2 December 2014. The event, jointly organised by the Italian Presidency of the Council, the Lombardy Region and the Commission, gathered together some 1,000 participants form the seven participating countries. This conference closed the public consultation and was at the same time the starting point for the drafting of the Action Plan.

Results

Overall, the consultation process emphasised that tackling shared challenges and opportunities in relation to the four themes requires coherent, integrated and coordinated approaches on the part of the countries involved. Neither unilateral national approaches nor sector-based approaches would suffice.

Respondents of different capacities participated in the public consultation of the EUSALP. In particular private persons and representatives from the civil society responded to the survey, followed by public authorities. In total 330 contributions were received of which198 on the website of the Commission and 129 on the Italian page of the EUSALP-website. the latter as follows: 54 in English, 65 in German, 23 in French, 51 in Italian, and eight in Slovenian. Residents of different countries participated in the consultation, including both residents of the countries in the Alpine Region, as well as other EU member states. All in all, 26 contributions came from Austria, five from Belgium, 38 from France, 43 from Germany, 194 from Italy, one from Latvia, four from Liechtenstein, one from the Netherlands, ten from Slovenia and eight from Switzerland. Most respondents were well informed about the EUSALP. 50% say that they are very well informed.

1st Thematic Policy Area

The public consultation provided insights on which objectives are perceived as most important with regard to driving innovative growth in the Alpine Region. With regard to the three Actions of the 1st Thematic Policy Area, the main objectives highlighted in the consultation are:

 An Alpine Innovation Strategy and better networking of research centres and enterprises are the main objectives for the innovation priority;

 With regard to strengthening SMEs both developing Alpine added-value chains and supporting SMEs have been indicated as important objectives for the Alpine Region.

 Strengthening the skills levels and competences of the workforce in the Alpine Region and to stimulate the Alpine Job Market are important objectives for developing the labour market.

According to the public consultation, a number of barriers to the mobility of labour, students, goods and ideas in the region have been identified. The greatest barrier to labour mobility in the Alpine Region is language differences and barriers concerning transport connections and accessibility. Moreover, the legislative and administrative differences burden the labour mobility in the area. A lack of information – not only regarding the needs of people in the area, but also on exchange and cooperation projects in the area serves to hinder labour mobility. In the area of education and training, there are barriers in terms of training, education possibilities and vocational training, and also the recognition of qualifications across borders remains difficult.

With regard to the challenges for the future competitiveness of the region, the respondents to the public consolation highlight challenges related to the environment and climate change as most important, followed by challenges related to demographic change, tourism development and transportation.

The responses to the public consultation contain many ideas and proposals for concrete actions to be taken in order to improve the Alpine Region labour market and the development of SMEs. The following are some of those ideas that (in different words) have been mentioned more frequently:

Strategic issues:

 Multilingual (online) job-centre for the Alpine Region, including support to employees and potential employers (in particular SMEs, start-ups, entrepreneurs);

 Alpine training centre / activities for joint education and vocational training or standard education (related to languages, entrepreneurship, tourism, agriculture, industry, commerce);

 Alpine mobility programme for secondary school students, but also for workers;

 Alpine brand, label, image enhancement for products and services produced in the Alpine Region;

As for the field of innovation some of the project ideas mentioned more frequently are:

 Alpine innovation strategy;

 Alpine Region think tank promoting innovative process of local and interregional development;

 Creation of networks between scientific institutions to optimise the use of research infrastructure;

2nd Thematic Policy Area

With regard to the policy area “Mobility and Connectivity”, the public consultation showed that the first priority is on better overall transport systems for both freight and passenger transport. In particular, inter-modality and inter-operability are key issues. The strategic priority “A better connected society in the Region”, including the digital agenda, strengthening the solidarity between people living in different areas and accessibility to services received the second highest support. Finally, the strategic priority “Improve sustainable accessibility for all Alpine areas” was perceived as less important compared to the above mentioned priorities.

The main challenges for the Alpine Region in terms of connectivity coming out of the consultation process can be grouped around major themes:

 Logistics-freight: Macro-regional coordination of infrastructure investments; Missing links of the TEN-T corridors, particularly cross-border ; Improve the intermodal transport supply; Promoting modal shift with taxes and incentives ; Harmonise toll and tax systems; Improve all transport modes rather than restricting the trucks ; Last mile logistics need to be considered;

 Passengers: Reduce individual traffic with a sustainable transport of better quality; Connecting the existing lines cross border in remote areas like IT-FR, IT-CH ; Maintain or redevelop public transport in remote areas; Invest in local railways instead of roads and high speed train; Improve the inner-alpine accessibility by all transport systems; Integrate practical information on timetables and tariffs in the region; common management of transport operators;

 Digital agenda: Increase the ICT connectivity and awareness; Develop the Physical/temporal accessibility of Services of general interest; Integrate the information sites for tourism and culture

3rd Thematic Policy Area

The public consultation shows that environment is among the most important areas where macro-regional cooperation is needed. In response to question 1 of the public consultation which asks respondents to identify the main topics where environmental cooperation should be fostered, approximately two thirds of respondents mentioned either environment or sustainable development in general, or specific environmental issues which they think warrant attention.

Based on the results of the public consultation, and in particular the responses given to the open-ended question regarding the main topics to be addressed by the strategy, the five most relevant environmental topics identified by the public consultation are nature and biodiversity, cultural heritage, climate change, water and energy.

The question regarding the main objectives on which the EUSALP should focus yielded less clear-cut responses in terms of identifying themes to be addressed by the strategy.

The cross-cutting issue of ‘unlocking creative potential’ received the most support, followed by objectives relating to energy, preservation of ecosystems, and climate change. However, these responses also support the prioritisation of the 5 environmental topics identified through the analysis of responses provided to question 1, as the most popular objectives relate to the topics of natural and cultural resources, energy, ecosystems, and climate change.

The respondents to the public consultation identified ideas for projects or actions to be taken under the EUSALP. Only about 60.3% of respondents provided one or more examples of projects or actions related to the 3rd Policy Area, almost 40% of respondents provided no examples of projects or actions for this Policy Area. The responses also varied in terms of depth and scope, with some focusing on specific examples of existing projects and their description, and others on wider actions under which several projects can potentially be implemented.

Governance

The public consultation has revealed a number of barriers to cooperation which the macro-regional strategy should seek to overcome. Existing cooperation mechanisms across the national borders need to be improved in the Alpine Region.

Bureaucratic and formalised structures burden the cooperation of the regions. The existing bureaucratic administration structures in the region have been mentioned as cooperation barriers. The existing structures appear as too complicated, technocratic and according to the public consultation they would benefit from simplification.

Moreover, cultural and language differences are also regarded as barriers. Such differences complicate the communication in the region and fragment the skills of the labour market. The lack of coordination of existing mechanisms is another barrier. A stronger involvement of the regional level, the coordination between the regions, but also the involvement of NGOs, civil society the private sector, the Chambers of Commerce is seen as necessary. Last but not least, the lack of information as concerns people’s needs as well as cooperation programmes has been mentioned as cooperation barrier.

In the public consultation different governance structures for the Region have been suggested to ensure an effective coordination between the actors involved. These structures range from the creation of new bodies to the strengthening of the existing ones, as for instance the Alpine Convention, which has been frequently mentioned. The respondents suggested the creation of new working groups, task forces, joint offices, agencies, networks, EGTCs, committees and regional councils. The envisaged governance structure should also allow the full participation of all levels of governance. The respondents also suggest the stronger involvement and participation of citizens, civil society and NGOs, but also the need for stronger participation of the local level and a stronger coordination between the regions. Moreover, the commitment of higher political levels, such as the European and national level is necessary, according to the consultation.

The responses vary when it comes to the key actors for a better cooperation and coordination in the Alpine Region, as well as on who should have the ultimate responsibility for achieving result and be the key decision-makers. A strong emphasis is given to the lower governance levels. Enlarge, it is stressed that the EU, national and regional level should share responsibilities.

Public bodies and authorities, the regional and local level, but also citizens and civil society should play a strong role in the EUSALP. Therefore, representatives from regions, NGOs, mayors, regional councils and communities, NGO representatives, associations, institutions, provinces, municipalities, citizens’ representatives in general, but also citizens themselves should have an active role in the in decision-making and in the implementation of the Strategy.

A stronger participation in the implementation of the Strategy is suggested for private actors, especially of sectors as transport, tourism and energy. Chambers of Commerce, Economic Interest Groupings, association and tourist offices, SMEs, regional banks have been suggested as actors.