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The biggest obstacle to achieving an agreement at the Copenhagen climate summit will be disagreements over emission reduction commitments and financing, says the EU’s chief negotiator Artur Runge-Metzger.

The conclusion of a new greenhouse gas emissions treaty could take up to a year after next month’s Copenhagen climate change summit, say United Nations officials.

The European Commission is unlikely to come forward with a proposal that would make sustainability criteria for biomass used to generate heat and power legally binding.

A comprehensive new European pollutant release and transfer register – called E-PRTR – was launched earlier this month by the European Commission and the European Environment Agency.

The recently published Report on Energy and Climate Policy in Europe (RECIPE) suggest that Europe could benefit from better climate protection even if no other countries join in, so long as a meaningful impact is made before 2020.