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sustainability regulation

Nearly all governments around the world remain committed to address climate change, despite recent political upheavals. In the EU, this has led to the introduction and implementation of a wide-ranging set of policies designed to reduce emissions, develop more economic self-reliance and establish a circular economy.

For companies, environmental regulation has complex implications, adding compliance costs but also incentivising operational changes to improve their own efficiency. In the ICT sector, there are also opportunities to deploy digital solutions to help other organisations work in a more environmentally-friendly way.

Our Sustainability service deciphers the complexity of environmental regulation, making it easy to understand how interrelated EU policies affect your organisation. Start your personal demo today and find out what our independent, expert insight could do for you.

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general topics covered

EU environmental policy

Stay up to date on EU environmental policies. Our Sustainability service provides clarity, insight and commentary on the key aspects of the European Green Deal, including the rules to address:

  • Emissions reduction
  • Renewable energy and energy efficiency
  • Ecodesign and critical raw materials
  • Waste and recycling
  • Corporate sustainability reporting
  • Consumer protection
National and international developments

Climate change is a global issue. Our independent reporting and analysis cover major environmental developments on the world stage, including:

  • IPCC assessments and reports
  • COP meetings and their outcomes
  • National environmental targets and policy
The impact on the ICT sector

Emissions from ICT are among the fastest growing across all industrial sectors, in particular due to massive increased demand for data centre capacity. In addition, e-waste is one of the fastest growing waste streams in the EU. To address these and other challenges, the EU has introduced a number of measures targeted specifically at the ICT sector, while recognising the importance of the digital sector for EU competitiveness. Our ICT sustainability module explores environmental rules and their implications for the ICT sector, covering topics such as:

  • Environmental impacts of digitisation and innovation
  • Code of conduct for telecoms networks
  • Rules and best practices for data centres
  • Actions taken by telecoms operators, ICT companies, and sectoral regulators
  • Transparency and reporting rules
The impact on the transport and delivery sector

The transport sector currently accounts for more than 30% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions. However, EU actions to address the environmental impact of the sector face a number of challenges, including increasing transport volumes and e-commerce, slower than anticipated take-up of electric vehicles, and stalling public sector transport use. Our transport sustainability module explores environmental rules and their implications for the transport and delivery sector, covering topics such as:

  • CO2 emission standards for vehicles
  • Alternative fuels and the related infrastructure
  • Sustainable and smart mobility
  • Actions taken by logistics and delivery operators, and by sectoral regulators
  • Transparency and reporting rules

latest intelligence

DNA: European Parliament draft report clarifies scope of environmental sustainability duties
03 November 26 Bianca Sofian

The European Parliament published a draft report on its position concerning the proposed DNA, including on those provisions related to environmental sustainability. The rapporteur suggested amendments to two articles of the DNA to clarify where it refers to environmental sustainability rather than other forms of sustainability, e.g. economic or competitive sustainability.

UNEP report finds current climate policies could lead to 2.8°C of global warming
26 October 26 Emilie Degand

The seventeenth Emissions Gap report found that, under current policies, global warming could reach 2.8°C during this century. By contrast, following the lowest possible 1.5°C overshoot scenario, the level of warming would peak at around 1.7–1.8°C by mid-century and could return to or below 1.5°C by 2100.

EU data centre minimum performance standards progress amid design challenges
20 October 26 Emilie Degand

The second stakeholder workshop on future minimum performance standards for data centres explored the possibility of using multiple environmental indicators, with thresholds accounting for differences in data centre size, age and local conditions. Discussions also covered challenges related to waste-heat reuse and trade-offs between energy and water consumption.

EU calls for stronger climate action ahead of COP31 to limit 1.5°C overshoot
16 October 26 Emilie Degand

The Council established the EU’s main negotiating position ahead of COP31, setting priorities around strengthening the implementation of NDCs, accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels and implementing the global stocktake outcomes.

European sustainability developments – 3Q 2026 update
08 October 26 Bianca Sofian

This report provides a summary of the main developments in environmental policy and regulation in Europe in the three months from July to September 2026.

EU data centre sustainability label finalised with minor changes
30 September 26 Emilie Degand

The Commission published the delegated regulation establishing the common EU sustainability rating scheme for data centres and launched a consultation on minimum performance standards.

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upcoming events

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16 > 17 November 26 Brussels, Belgium Masterclass in EU environmental policy, legislation & industry practices

get in touch

For more information about our sustainability service, please contact:

Peter Dunn phone: +32 2 738 72 00 peter.dunn@cullen-international.com