Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No. 269/2019 amending Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement, on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms related to climate change.

The present decision of the EEA Joint Committee extends the cooperation between, on the one side, the European Union, and, on the other side, Iceland and Norway, in areas related to climate change. It fully extends the cooperation between the parties to Regulation (EU) No. 2018/841 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 and to Regulation (EU) No. 2018/842 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018, while partially extending the cooperation to certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No. 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018, Regulation (EU) No. 525/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2013, and Regulation (EU) No. 749/2014 of 30 June 2014.
Under Regulation (EU) No. 2018/841, Norway and Iceland shall, by 1 January 2021, prepare and submit to the EFTA Surveillance Authority its strategy for the land use, land use change and forestry sector with a perspective of at least 30 years. Moreover, the decision specifies the adaptations that shall be done to Regulation (EU) No. 2018/841 and Regulation (EU) No. 2018/842, and lists the applicable provisions of Regulation (EU) No. 2018/1999, Regulation (EU) No. 525/2013, and Regulation (EU) No. 749/2014.
The document also includes a declarations by Iceland and Norway on national plans related to the Decision of the EEA Joint Committee. Iceland and Norway will, on a voluntary basis, develop national plans describing how Iceland and Norway intend to fulfil the commitments they have undertaken under this Decision. These will be made available to the EU Member States, the European Commission, the EFTA Surveillance Authority and the public, by 31 December 2019.