L 76/10 Official Journal of the European Union 22.3.2003 DIRECTIVE 2003/17/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 3 March 2003 amending Directive 98/70/EC relating to the quality of petrol and diesel fuels (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu- nity, and in particular Article 95 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission ('), Having regard to the Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (3), After consultation of the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (°), in the light of the joint text approved by the Conciliation Committee on 20 January 2003, Whereas: (1)  Directive 98/70/EC (*) lays down the environmental specifications for market fuels. (2)  Article 95 of the Treaty provides that Commission proposals having as their object the establishment and functioning of the internal market and concerning, inter alia, health and environmental protection, will take as a base a high level of protection and that the European Parliament and the Council will also seek to achieve this objective. (3) A revision of Directive 98/70/EC is foreseen in order to meet the requirements of Community air quality stan- dards and related objectives and in order to incorporate additional specifications to complement those manda- tory specifications already laid down in Annex I and Annex IV to the Directive. (4) A reduction of the sulphur content of petrol and diesel fuels has been identified as a means of contributing to the achievement of those objectives. (5)  The adverse effect of sulphur in petrol and diesel fuels on the effectiveness of catalytic exhaust gas after-treat- ment technologies is well established for on-road vehi- cles and increasingly in the case of non-road mobile machinery. (6)  Road vehicles are increasingly reliant upon catalytic after-treatment devices to attain the emissions limits laid down in Council Directive 70/220/EEC of 20 March 1970 on the approximation of the laws of the Member () O] C 213 E, 31.7.2001, p. 255. () O] C 36, 8.2.2002, p. 115. (}) Opinion of the European Parliament of 29 November 2001 (O] C 153 E, 27.6.2002, p. 253). Council Common Position of 15 April 2002 (O] C 145 E, 18.6.2002, p. 71) and decision of the European Parliament of 26 September 2002 (not yet published in the Official Journal). Decision of the European Parliament of 30 January 2003 and Council decision of 6 February 2003. (*) OJ L 350, 28.12.1998, p. 58; Directive as last amended by Commis- sion Directive 2000/71/EC (O] L 287, 14.11.2000, p. 46). States on measures to be taken against air pollution by emissions from motor vehicles (°) and Council Directive 88/77[EEC of 3 December 1987 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the measures to be taken against the emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants from compression ignition engines for use in vehicles, and the emission of gaseous pollutants from positive ignition engines fuelled with natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas for use in vehi- cles (°). Accordingly a reduction in the sulphur content of petrol and diesel fuels is likely to have a larger impact on exhaust emissions than changes to the other fuel parameters. (7)  The introduction of fuels with a maximum sulphur content of 10 mgfkg will improve the fuel efficiency attainable with new, emerging vehicle technologies and should be examined in the case of non-road mobile machinery and should lead to significant reductions in emissions of conventional air pollutants when used in existing vehicles. These benefits will compensate for the increased emissions of CO, associated with the produc- tion of lower sulphur petrol and diesel fuels. (8) It is therefore appropriate to lay down measures ensuring the introduction and availability of fuels with a maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg. In this regard fiscal incentives have been shown to be effective in promoting the early introduction of higher quality fuels according to national needs and priorities and to shorten the transition period where two different qualities are distributed in the market. The use of fiscal measures, at the appropriate national or Community level, should be promoted and encouraged. (99  The widespread availability of fuels with a maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg will provide a basis for automobile manufacturers to make significant additional progress towards improving the fuel efficiency of new vehicles. The potential contribution of fuels with a maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg towards the attainment of the Community's target of 120 g/km for the average CO, emissions of the new car fleet will be assessed when the current environmental commitments with the automobile manufacturers are reviewed in 2003. () OJ L 76, 6.4.1970, p. 1; Directive as last amended by Directive 2001/100/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (O] L 16, 18.1.2002, p. 32). () OJ L 36, 9.2.1988, p. 33; Directive as last amended by Commission Directive 2001/27/EC (O] L 107, 18.4.2001, p. 10).