Foreword
The principal aim of the OECD Environmental Performance Review programme is to help member and selected partner countries improve their individual and collective performance in environmental management by:
Helping countries assess progress in achieving their environmental goals
Stimulating greater accountability from governments towards each other and public opinion.
This report reviews the environmental performance of Luxembourg since the previous review in 2010. Progress in achieving domestic objectives and international commitments provides the basis for assessing the country’s environmental performance. Such objectives and commitments may be broad aims, qualitative goals or quantitative targets. A distinction is made between intentions, actions and results. Assessment of environmental performance is also placed within the context of Luxembourg’s historical environmental record, present state of the environment, physical endowment in natural resources, economic conditions and demographic trends.
The OECD is indebted to the government of Luxembourg for its co-operation in providing information, for the organisation of the review mission (4-7 June 2019), and for facilitating contacts both inside and outside government institutions.
Thanks are also due to the representatives of the two examining countries, Estelle Vercouter (Belgium) and Laura Platchkov (Switzerland).
The authors of this report are Nils Axel Braathen, Ivana Capozza, Myriam Linster, Eugene Mazur, Sarah Miet, Mikaela Rambali (OECD Environment Directorate) and Jean Cinq-Mars (consultant), under the co-ordination of Myriam Linster. Nathalie Girouard and Ivana Capozza provided oversight and guidance. Sarah Miet provided statistical support, Pascale Rossignol provided administrative support and Mark Foss copy-edited the report. Natasha Cline-Thomas provided communications support. The authors gratefully acknowledge the feedback and comments received by Raphaël Jachnik (OECD Environment Directorate) and Peter Journeay-Kaler (International Energy Agency).
The assessment presented in this report was mostly prepared between July 2019 and January 2020 and does not take into account the consequences of the health crisis caused by COVID-19. However, a few references were added in October 2020 for information.
The OECD Working Party on Environmental Performance discussed the draft Environmental Performance Review of Luxembourg at its meeting on 25 February 2020 in Paris, and approved the Assessment and Recommendations on 27 October 2020.