Decision No. 1386/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on a General Union Environment Action Programme to 2020 Living well, within the limits of our planet .

This Decision sets forth a general European Union action programme in the field of the environment for the period up to 31 December 2020, called the 7th Environment Action programme. This programme is based on the precautionary principle, the principles of preventive action and of rectification of pollution at source and the polluter-pays principle. It has the following priority objectives: (a) to protect, conserve and enhance the European European Union s natural capital; (b) to turn the European Union into a resource-efficient, green and competitive low-carbon economy; (c) to safeguard the European Union s citizens from environment-related pressures and risks to health and well-being; (d) to maximise the benefits of European Union environment legislation by improving implementation; (e) to improve the knowledge and evidence base for European Union environment policy; (f) to secure investment for environment and climate policy and address environmental externalities; (g) to improve environmental integration and policy coherence; (h) to enhance the sustainability of the European Union s cities; and (i) to increase the European Union s effectiveness in addressing international environmental and climate-related challenges.