Press

42 press releases

Advisory council calls on Dutch government to pay greater attention to implementation of policy for the living environment

Rli 23 February 2024 - Implementation of policy for the living environment is lagging behind, meaning that urgent problems are not being solved. The Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) therefore calls on the Dutch government to strike a much better balance between policy development and policy implementation in actual practice. The Rli does so in its advisory report on “Bridging the Implementation Gap…

Advisory board: Stop the throw-away society

Rli 24 November 2023 - More and more products end up as waste after only a short time. The desire to produce and sell as much as possible – for example clothing, furniture, and electronics – leads to low quality and short product lifespans. This is at the expense of working conditions, the climate, and the environment. If we want to make our economy sustainable, this must be stopped. In its advisory report Phasing Out…

Government needs to support sustainable business parks

Rli 31 October 2023 - Central government should set goals for the sustainability of business parks. Organised cooperation between businesses is vital in order to achieve these goals together. Central government should encourage such organisation and eventually make it a legal requirement. The formation of an organisation is also in the interest of the businesses themselves. These are the conclusions reached by the…

Additional measures needed to ensure good water quality

Rli 11 May 2023 - The quality of groundwater and surface water in the Netherlands is poor. Moreover, national and international regulations are not being followed. For example, the European Water Framework Directive sets standards to be achieved by 2027. But this objective is almost certainly no longer feasible, which is harmful to people and nature. Also, legal proceedings can hamper economic activities in the…

Advice of Rli, RVS and ROB to the Dutch government: A change of approach is needed in the area of regional policy

Rli 27 March 2023 - There are significant regional disparities in wellbeing in the Netherlands and these disparities are widening. Government policy should focus on countering undesirable disparities, as compensating for deficits alone is not enough. Investment in long-term regional development is needed throughout the Netherlands. When making policy choices, the government should place the emphasis not only on…

The Netherlands needs much more sustainable finance

10 February 2023 - At present, there is far too little sustainable investment in the Netherlands. The financial sector must move faster to change this situation and the government needs to act to ensure the sector actually does so. This is what the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) argues in its advisory report ‘Finance in transition: towards an active role for the financial sector in a…

Energy transition calls for diligent decision-making on nuclear power stations

Rli 7 September 2022 - Over the coming years, the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) is anticipating a political and public debate on the organisation of our future energy system and the possible role of nuclear energy within it. Decisions in this area will need to be taken diligently and be future-proof to avoid putting the 2050 climate targets at risk. In its advisory report ‘Splitting the atom,…

Solving the housing crisis requires more action from housing associations and municipalities

Rli 18 August 2022 - Social housing stock needs to expand considerably in the next few years. That’s why central government needs to considerably step up efforts to maximise the performance of housing associations and municipalities. In its advisory report ‘Providing shelter: maximising the performance of housing associations’, presented today to Minister for Housing Hugo de Jonge, the Council for the Environment and…

Nature everywhere and for everyone

23 March 2022 - 23 March 2022 – Nature is declining at an alarming rate in the Netherlands. According to the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli), the biodiversity crisis is as serious as the climate crisis. Robust nature is crucial for the quality of life in the Netherlands. People depend on nature for their health, for clean drinking water, for healthy food and for clean air. In its advisory…

Give sustainable farmers prospects for the future

2 December 2021 - Farmers should have prospects for the future within the boundaries of sustainability. To operate their businesses, farmers must have at least the following: clarity about the criteria that their farm must meet, the freedom to determine how they will meet those criteria, and a well-managed system of monitoring and enforcement. Meeting these three conditions will require new government policy. This…