Sustainable development becomes Treaty goal for EC

Sustainable development has become one of the European Community's main goals and environmental protection will have to be integrated into all its policies under amendments to the EC Treaty agreed in June. Tougher environmental rules may also result following the extension of the co-decision procedure, which gives the European Parliament greater influence, to all environmental legislation. But the amendments appear to have seriously reduced the scope for Member States to maintain or introduce stricter national environmental rules for traded goods.