The European Union’s climate commissioner, Connie Hedegaard, has delivered a robust defence of EU climate policy and the need for ambitions to be raised higher than just one carbon dioxide emissions reduction target for 2030.
Ms Hedegaard told a Eurogas conference in Brussels, the European Commission was working hard on “getting the narrative right,” ahead of an announcement before 2014 on whether the bloc should have more than one CO2 target for 2020.
“I think that is wise,” she said. “During the economic crisis we had more than one target and that has helped us a lot.”
“Imagine if we had only had a CO2 target and the Emissions Trading System (ETS) during this crisis,” she continued.
“Would Europe have continued to have such a strong focus on energy efficiency and renewables? I don’t believe it.”
EU news website EurActiv reports the EU currently has three 20 per cent targets for 2020, encompassing a CO2 emissions cut, a share of the energy market for renewable energy, and an improvement in energy efficiency, although this latter goal is voluntary.
A new report by the European Environment Agency (EEA) yesterday found that the bloc had reduced its emissions by 18 per cent between 1990 and 2012, and met 13 per cent of its energy use from renewable energy in 2011.
The environmental group Sandbag put out a statement arguing that if carbon offsets were counted, the real emissions reduction figure would be 27%, but that free handouts to industry were distorting the picture.
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Without reform, the 2020 climate framework will undermine our future climate efforts by drowning them in spare carbon allowances,” said Damien Morris, a senior policy advisor at Sandbag.
“A 30 per cent target in 2020 would be a simple way to prevent this.”
“Some of the sectors complaining the most about climate policies have gained from the system so far,” Ms Hedegaard agreed.
“That is a fact. They have had a surplus of allowances, sold them and profited from them, yet are complaining a lot.”
EurActiv reports the EC is currently preparing a structural market reform plan for the ETS, which will be brought forward before the end of the year.
However, first “we need some clear signals on the ‘Energiewende’ (Germany’s post-nuclear energy transition) and decisions being taken there to make the progress we need on the ETS,” Ms Hedegaard said.
She warned those pushing for a carbon tax instead to “be careful what you wish for”, as this could lead to a fragmented and incoherent European policy framework.
EurActiv reports the more oft-heard criticism of EU climate policy in Brussels these days is that it hampers industry with cost overhangs on energy prices particularly, partly due to renewable energy subsidies.
