Hello, my name is Babette Nieder and my topic is the European impact on municipalities.
But before I get to that, some words on my personal background. German by birth,
French by choice, Ive got the dual citizenship while waiting to simply put European
in my passport. I come from Herten, a city of 60,000 inhabitants, in between
Paris and Berlin. I was born in 1963 in the region of the Ruhr, during the industrial boom phase
in Germany, already under the European Coal and Steel Community. 7
In 1963, President De Gaulle and Chancellor Adenauer signed the Elysée Treaty.
This treaty established links between civil society with the creation of the Franco-German Youth Office
for which I later became Secretary General. But my European adventure
and my passion for France started later. At 16 I went on a four-week
adventure thanks to the InterRail European railway pass . My encounters
on trains, in large cities and small towns showed me
that learning languages ??is useful. At the time, English had not yet taken over
linguistic diversity. This trip was an introduction to three key themes
that accompany my professional life: Europe, Youth exchange and Innovation.
At the end of my studies, I worked as a language assistant at Châtellrault
while preparing for the competition to enter the European Commission, when Edith Cresson, at that time
mayor of Châtellrault and Minister for European Affairs told me "Europe is more
than Brussels". This is the dimension of Europe I want to talk about now.
At Herten, I realise European policies on competition and environment,
as well as the implementation of European funds in the field. Constraints
and potential of Europe 's legislation in Herten. Competition, everyone says
that it is a constraint that Europe imposes. Yes, it is a constraint, but I will tell you
how this constraint has also allowed us to evolve. With the closure of
the last mine, 150 years of coal mining at Herten ended in 2008.
The closure as well as the loss of 20,000 jobs are a direct result of this
competition policy. Extracting coal over 1000 meters deep
is not profitable. The German government, the state of North Rhine Westphalia and the consumers
have been subsidising this activity. The European Commission considered that
this financial aid is incompatible with European law. Therefore Germany
committed itself to close all coal mines until 2018. Herten once
did nothing than extracting a raw material that is at the bottom of the value chain.
Today the city produces energy and has a unique expertise in the storage of renewable energy.
"Blue sky over the Ruhr", this famous campaign slogan of Willy Brandt,
became a reality. The coal mines are a memory of brotherhood and cultural mix.
But the price to pay was very high in terms of pollution, accidents
and health. Another effect of competition policy, it is the opening up of local
energy markets, in Germany these are traditionally managed by municipal utilities called:
Stadtwerke. Nowadays these Stadtwerke are subject to competition.
But to everyone's surprise, they did not only withstood their competitors but they even
gained market share on major capitalist groups in the region.
Finally, as the third well-known area, municipality is obliged to make European tenders
when it awards contracts. I am speaking to you with full knowledge of the facts. All those saying
that this leads to always favouring the one who uses price dumping to the detriment of
quality are wrong! Qualitative criteria such as the carbon footprint or the degree of innovation
may absolutely be taken into account when it is transparent
and mentioned in the specifications. Another European policy that has an impact on local life
is environmental policy. The cost of the remediation of contaminated soil,
landfill closures or the installation of filters in funnels is important.
But the climate balance of Herten today is 6.8 tons of CO2 per habitant
German average is 11 tons. Think about it: a city that for fifty years
had the largest coal production in Europe is now one of nineteen
model cities in Germany leading the way to the "zero CO2 emission"-goal supported by
the Ministry of the Environment in Berlin. Another aspect where we all got angry,
was the environmental policy: "No more factories in the cities!"
However, many companies are telling us something else these days. Production is no longer black smoke
and heavy mechanics. BMW, Volkswagen and Porsche have settled right
in the city centre of Dresden and Leipzig. The trend is the return to the manufacture. We are
no longer heading to the city centers as temples of consumption. We go there to
taste local products. We go there as well for the so-called repair cafés where handymen
repair bikes or household appliances together instead of buying new products made ??in China.
Finally, a great project related to European wastewater policy. The outline of
the Ruhr is formed by three rivers: the Rhine: transport axis; the Ruhr:
drinking water reservoir; the Emscher: an open sewer that for a hundred years
carried wastewater. Now we are constructing a huge channel for nearly five million inhabitants
along the Emscher which finds its natural course. The miners' houses along the Emscher
regain value. A prohibited area has become a haven for cyclists,
hikers, and perhaps soon even for fishermen. Ten thousand people
will be working for twenty years on this project of the century. Everything has its price. The 4.5 billion
are partially paid by the water bill, but also by European funds.
Europe supports the transformation. As the mayor Uli Paetzel said: "Without EU funding,
cities like Herten could not invest in their future." Here are some examples.
First, the renovation of deprived neighborhoods. Secondly, the development
of the former site of the mines. Thirdly, the rearrangement of the Dewald site that
nowadays provides 1,300 jobs. Fourthly, the H2 Herten center with its hydrogen production
from a wind turbine. This system allows the storage of electrical energy and produces
clean hydrogen for fuel cell vehicles and for industrial usage
such as the production of ammonia. All this is possible with structural funds
but also research funds. And with the Horizon 2020 program,
research funds will support energy and innovation even further. The European Social Fund
supports the upgrading of educational qualifications and vocational training programs.
Leonardo has allowed us to create a European platform Cleantech with businesses,
schools and chambers of commerce and trade. If you want homes
that meet high environmental standards and electric cars, you have to build an intermediate sector:
craftsmen, technicians, skilled workers. Vocational training,
urban planning, technology, all this is very important. But it makes no sense
if there is not also a change in behavior and civic attitude.
That is why I was very pleased that the Maison déducation pour tous is
involved in a project, called Grundtvig, on the reception of applicants for asylum in Germany, Italy
Greece and Great Britain. In conclusion, Europe is a new horizon and the encounter
with the other. Europe is present in our communes. It is in our every-day life.
And if we accept this challenge and understand this new reality,
it is a great potential for economic, ecological and social renewal, as in Herten.
The vote in the European elections on May 25, will also be a vote
on the future of your commune.
[Applause]