Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 60 per cent by 2030: that is what the European Parliament is calling for in the new text of the climate law.
The European Union, which aspires to become the first continent to achieve net zero climate impact by 2050, has long since pledged to cut CO2 emissions by 40 per cent by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. In the State of the Union address delivered on 16 September, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen raised the bar: at least 55 per cent must be achieved, otherwise it will be impossible to fulfil this ambition and honour the Paris Agreement. The European Parliament is not content merely to accept the challenge — it is raising the stakes, aiming for 60 per cent.
On Thursday 8 October, the European Parliament, meeting in Brussels, gave the green light to the climate law, with an amendment (voted on the previous day) raising the 2030 emissions reduction target to 60 per cent. 392 votes in favour, 161 against and 142 abstentions.
The climate law will be the cornerstone of the Union's green future, because it will transform what is today a commitment — zeroing out net emissions by 2050 — into a legally binding obligation. Members of the European Parliament are therefore calling on the Commission to also study an interim target for 2040 and to unlock the funding needed for a transition of this scale. They specify that every individual member state will have to achieve climate neutrality. Progress made — they propose — should be assessed by an independent scientific body established for this purpose: the European Climate Change Council (Eccc).
The energy chapter is crucial in this process. In this regard, MEPs are calling on the Union and individual member states to phase out by 31 December 2025 all subsidies (direct or indirect) in favour of fossil fuels. In Italy alone — according to a recent analysis — these amount to 19 billion euros per year.
The next appointment is with the European Council, scheduled for 15 and 16 October, which will bring together the heads of state and government of the member countries. This will likely be the most complicated stage, as a compromise will have to be found between very diverse needs and interests.
The countries that have so far shown the most reluctance are above all those of Eastern Europe, such as Poland, which is heavily dependent on a coal-based economy. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the environment minister has already declared that it will be "difficult" to meet the climate targets that had been set. Once a common position has been agreed among all member states, Parliament will begin negotiations with the individual states of the Union. The hope is to conclude negotiations on the climate law before the end of 2020.
Another date to bear in mind is 31 May 2023. This is the deadline by which the European Commission will have to draw up a detailed roadmap explaining how to achieve the two major objectives: reaching climate neutrality by 2050 and limiting global warming as set out in the Paris Agreement.
