Because Europe is straining on the climate
Europe postpones climate decisions to avoid discord. The study of Le Monde
The EU-27 must agree – we read in Le Monde – how much each country will have to achieve to meet its common commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, a difficult undertaking.
They expected the discussion on climate issues to become tough. To avoid spending long hours on this topic and to give the image of a divided Europe, the European heads of state and government, meeting in Brussels on Tuesday 25 May, preferred not to make any decisions at this stage. As a result, an entire paragraph has disappeared between the draft conclusions drawn up by the teams of the Prime Minister, Charles Michel, and the final text. It is the same one who established some "guidelines" for the Commission, charged with thinking about how Europeans can achieve the goal of reducing CO2 emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990. "The conclusions do not they are the most significant thing today, ”admitted French President Emmanuel Macron . German Chancellor Angela Merkel, for her part, welcomed the "intermediate step".
Europeans certainly remembered the commitment they made for 2030, on 11 December 2020, to be able to achieve carbon neutrality in 2050, in accordance with the Paris Agreement. But they haven't been able to decide how to achieve this, other than in a minimalist way. "Everyone explained their point of view, it was more of a therapy session," notes a European source.
The memory of 11 December 2020 is still present in everyone's mind: Mateusz Morawiecki's Poland extended the meeting overnight to insert its goals in the compromise text on the 2030 target, specifically calling for more financial transfers to support it in this ecological conversion. In the wake of this, Prague and Bucharest took the opportunity to present their demands, getting a mention in favor of gas as a transition energy. Just like Malta and the Czech Republic, which had respectively emphasized "the national context of the islands" and "the decline of natural carbon sinks", hoping to put their contribution to the next effort into perspective.
"SHARE A PARTICULAR EFFORT BETWEEN US"
The EU-27 will return to the issue "in due course, after the Commission has presented its proposals," they said. Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the Commission, who is also a member of the Council, took note of the requests from both sides. "There has been a dense, useful and necessary exchange of views to allow each country to express its priorities and concerns," said Charles Michel.
On July 14, the EU executive intends to present twelve legislative proposals that will make it possible to design a greener Europe 2030. “We are waiting for the copy of the Commission (…), enriched by today's confrontation”, summed up Emmanuel Macron. It will take a lot of intelligence – and certainly money – for Ursula von der Leyen to win the support of the 27 Member States, given that the issues on the table are so explosive. In particular, the Commission will have to determine the criteria that will make it possible to share the effort among Europeans, country by country, in the sectors (transport, construction, agriculture, waste management, etc.) currently excluded from the carbon emission rights market ( ETS), which is still reserved for industry and energy. “It's a zero-sum game, as we have to divide a given effort between us,” comments one diplomat.
The countries of the East, led by Poland, are pushing for the greatest efforts to be made by the countries with the highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, which are also the ones that have already reduced their CO2 emissions the most. Their northern partners, on the other hand, want the lagging countries to contribute more, arguing that it is easier (and therefore cheaper) for them to make progress, given their starting point. "Every member state must do its part," Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz insisted on Tuesday, who, like his Luxembourg counterpart, also reiterated his strong opposition to nuclear power. Germany "is between the two, because Germany is also an Eastern country," said a diplomat.
A QUOTE EXCHANGE SYSTEM
The Commission is also working on a CO2 emissions trading scheme for the transport sector, in particular road transport, and possibly for the construction sector. This is a project that will affect citizens' wallets – through the price of fuel at the pump, for example – mainly because Brussels also intends to announce the end of internal combustion vehicles, at a date yet to be determined, somewhere between 2030. and 2040.
Warsaw and its Eastern European neighbors do not want to hear about it, unless it is accompanied by strong financial compensation. Germany, which has just created such a market, is in favor, as is Denmark. Holland says it is open to this. As for the French president, Emmanuel Macron, scalded by the precedent of the carbon tax and the "yellow vests", he is cautious. Ursula von der Leyen ensured that she thinks of rights to pollute on a "very small scale" coupled with mechanisms of "social compensation".
On July 14, Angela Merkel's former minister will also present her proposal to establish a carbon adjustment mechanism at the borders, which should allow, by taxing imports of goods produced outside the European Union in less climate-friendly conditions, to ensure fair competition between Europeans committed to climate neutrality and third countries that are less so. This time, it is Germany and the Scandinavians who will be very vigilant, even if they defend a more liberal view of trade than Paris or The Hague and do not want to alienate the United States. The debates have just begun, and the EU-27 will not escape one or more long nights of negotiations.
(Article taken from the foreign press review of Eprcomunicazione)
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/energia/perche-leuropa-si-slabbra-sul-clima/ on Wed, 02 Jun 2021 05:54:53 +0000.