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Agreement on EU climate target for 2030

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After tough negotiations between the EU states and parliament, it is clear that the EU wants to reduce its CO2 emissions by 55 percent by 2030. 20 years later, it wants to be climate neutral. The Greens speak of “computing tricks”.

Negotiators from the EU states and the European Parliament have finally agreed to tighten the climate target for 2030. By then, the European Union’s greenhouse gases are to be reduced by at least 55 percent below the 1990 level. So far, the target has been minus 40 percent. The climate law will also make it legally binding that the EU will become climate neutral by 2050. From this point onwards, the international community wants to emit fewer greenhouse gases than it otherwise compensates.

Savings through lowering?

After more than 15 hours of negotiations, the negotiators of the European Parliament finally accepted the brand that the EU heads of state and government had set at the end of 2020. The EU Parliament actually wanted a lot more: a 60 percent reduction in greenhouse gases and a more rigorous calculation method. The MPs only reached concessions in details. In addition to the percentage, the main point of contention was the question of whether and to what extent the amounts of carbon dioxide stored by forests, plants and soils should be included. MEPs complain that including these so-called sinks weakens the savings target. Instead of 55 percent, the actual savings would only be 52.8 percent, complained the Greens, among others.

Climate council should watch over goals

The parliamentarians negotiated at least that the counting of the sinks will be limited to 225 million tons of carbon dioxide. The EU Commission is to increase the binding power of the forests to 300 million tons of carbon dioxide through afforestation, so that net greenhouse gases could be saved by more than 55 percent. Parliament was able to establish a climate council with 15 experts to support the implementation of the goals. In addition, a greenhouse gas budget is determined for the next few decades, from which a milestone for 2040 can be derived.

“Binding promise”

The details of the deal now leave room for interpretation. The agreement puts the EU “on the green path” for a generation, said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. “It is our binding promise to our children and grandchildren.” Vice-President Frans Timmermans said that the EU was sending “a strong signal to the world”. The liberal chairman of the Environment Committee in the EU Parliament, Pascal Canfin, said that the compromise would enable a reduction of “close to 57 percent” by 2030 compared to 1990. The social democratic rapporteur Jytte Guteland made a similar statement. Parliament wanted more, but this was “a good first step towards climate neutrality,” she said.

Ambitious but necessary

The federal government praised the agreement as setting the course for new investments. Now the way is clear for an “ambitious European climate law”, said Economics Minister Peter Altmaier (CDU). “With clear, long-term objectives, we now have the unique opportunity to promote and reconcile climate protection and business together.” With investments in innovations and new clean technologies, jobs could be secured and new ones created, said Altmaier. Federal Research Minister Anja Karliczek also welcomed the EU decision. This was “ambitious, but absolutely necessary in view of the ongoing climate change,” said the CDU politician of the news agency dpa. Karliczek called for research in the field to be further strengthened. Without the further development of climate-friendly technologies, it will not be possible to limit the rise in temperature worldwide. “All over the world there will be more and more demand for climate-friendly technologies. The development of climate-friendly technologies will be a key issue for our country in the next few years,” emphasized Karliczek.

“Leadership lost”

The German CDU MP Peter Liese spoke of a “historic agreement”. If everything goes well, it is quite conceivable that the target for 2030 will be “overachieved” and that in the end there will be a “net 57 percent” reduction. The Federation of German Industries described the 55 percent target as “extremely ambitious”. The Greens were disappointed. “With this climate target and climate law, the European Union is losing its pioneering role in climate protection,” criticized MEP Michael Bloss. “The Paris climate agreement will hardly be able to be adhered to, climate change will not forgive us for that.” His group colleague Sven Giegold complained that the climate target had been reduced with a “computing trick”. This is a serious mistake, and the federal government has also contributed to it.

Biden invites you to the summit

The parliament and the council of the EU states still have to formally approve the outcome of the negotiations. Before US President Joe Biden’s virtual climate summit on Thursday and Friday, the political pressure was high to tie down a binding EU target and thus bring the EU climate law under wraps. The US is also expected to announce a more ambitious climate target for 2030. At the end of the year, all contractual partners are to sharpen their climate targets at a world climate conference in Glasgow. Otherwise the treaty target of stopping global warming below 2 degrees – and if possible only 1.5 degrees – would be missed.

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