The Council's and the European Parliament's negotiators reached a provisional political agreement setting into law the objective of a climate-neutral EU by 2050, and a collective, net greenhouse gas emissions reduction target (emissions after deduction of removals) of at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990.
We are very happy with the provisional deal reached today.
The European climate law is "the law of laws" that sets the frame for
the EU's climate-related legislation for the 30 years to come. The EU is
strongly committed to becoming climate neutral by 2050 and today we can
be proud to have set in stone an ambitious climate goal that can get
everyone's support. With this agreement we send a strong signal to the
world - right ahead of the Leader's Climate Summit on 22 April - and
pave the way for the Commission to propose its "fit-for-55" climate
package in June.
João Pedro Matos Fernandes, Minister of Environment and Climate Action
Regarding the 2030 target, negotiators agreed on the need to give
priority to emissions reductions over removals. In order to ensure that
sufficient efforts to reduce and prevent emissions are deployed until
2030, they introduced a limit of 225 Mt of CO2 equivalent to the
contribution of removals to the net target. They also agreed the Union
shall aim to achieve a higher volume of carbon net sink by 2030.
Other elements of the provisional agreement include the establishment
of a European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change, composed of
15 senior scientific experts of different nationalities with no more
than 2 members holding the nationality of the same member state for a
mandate of four years. This independent board will be tasked, among
other things, with providing scientific advice and reporting on EU
measures, climate targets and indicative greenhouse gas budgets and
their coherence with the European climate law and the EU's international
commitments under the Paris Agreement.
The negotiators agreed that the Commission would propose an
intermediate climate target for 2040, if appropriate, at the latest
within six months after the first global stocktake carried out under the
Paris Agreement. It will at the same time publish a projected
indicative Union’s greenhouse gas budget for the period 2030-2050,
together with its underlying methodology. The budget is defined as the
indicative total volume of net greenhouse gas emissions (expressed as
CO2 equivalent and providing separate information on emissions and
removals) that are expected to be emitted in that period without putting
at risk the Union’s commitments under the Paris Agreement.
Negotiators also agreed that the Commission would engage with sectors
of the economy that choose to prepare indicative voluntary roadmaps
towards achieving the Union’s climate neutrality objective by 2050. The
Commission would monitor the development of such roadmaps, facilitate
the dialogue at EU-level, and share best practices among relevant
stakeholders.
The provisional agreement also sets an aspirational goal for the EU to strive to achieve negative emissions after 2050.
The provisional political agreement is subject to approval by the
Council and Parliament, before going through the formal steps of the
adoption procedure. The provisional agreement was reached by the
Council's Portuguese Presidency and the European Parliament's
representatives, based on mandates from their respective institutions.
The text of the agreement will follow.
______________________________________________________________________________
Background
The European Council, in its conclusions of 12 December 2019, agreed
on the objective of achieving a climate-neutral EU by 2050, in line with
the objectives of the Paris Agreement, while also recognising that it
is necessary to put in place an enabling framework that benefits all
member states and encompasses adequate instruments, incentives, support
and investments to ensure a cost-efficient, just, as well as socially
balanced and fair transition, taking into account different national
circumstances in terms of starting points.
On 4 March 2020, the European Commission adopted its proposal for a
European climate law, as an important part of the European Green Deal.
On 17 September 2020, the Commission adopted a proposal amending its
initial proposal to include a revised EU emissions reduction target of
at least 55% by 2030. The Commission also published a communication on
the 2030 climate target plan, accompanied by a comprehensive impact
assessment.
On 10-11 December the European Council in its conclusions, endorsed a
binding EU target of a net domestic reduction of at least 55% in
greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990.
The Council adopted a general approach on 17 December 2020, after
which the Council and the Parliament launched a series of trilogue
meetings with the aim of securing an agreement on the final text.
Council of EU
© Council of the European Union
Key
Hover over the blue highlighted
text to view the acronym meaning
Hover
over these icons for more information
Comments:
No Comments for this Article