About: 2030 climate and energy targets
Industrial decarbonisation and the EU Green Deal: The case for bold action
The green deal is a credible first step to decarbonise energy-intensive industries such as steelmaking and chemicals. However, the transition to climate neutrality will also depend on the development of a comprehensive, integrated industrial strategy, writes Gauri Khandekar.
Time for a new deal for our planet, our communities and our future
The transition to net-zero emissions by 2050 is a massive challenge, but also a huge opportunity – a chance to design a socially inclusive, clean future, argue Sharan Burrow, Paul Polman and Laurence Tubiana.
Time is ripe to align EU policies with Paris Climate Agreement
It’s the new Commission’s first weeks in office and climate is in the spotlight, with a European Green Deal expected to be tabled on 11 December. To succeed, the deal needs to enshrine increased climate ambition for the next decade, align the EU budget accordingly and boost EU support to developing countries, writes Wendel Trio.
Progressive businesses support a 55% carbon reduction target in Europe
The COP25 climate summit in Madrid needs to lay the groundwork for 2020 when countries and blocs will be measured against their commitment to the Paris Agreement. At EU level, this should translate into an ambitious European Green Deal, writes Eliot Whittington.
Germany’s missed opportunity to regain climate leadership
The German climate cabinet’s plans for 2030, published last Friday, are a step forward for climate action but they are insufficient to achieve the government’s own targets, write Felix Heilmann, Alexander Reitzenstein and Brick Medak.
Connecting the dots to enable climate leadership at all levels
We are running out of time to achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2030, and need urgent and ambitious climate leadership. Cities are central to this effort – and it is crucial that we continue to enable our cities to address and solve climate challenges, writes Lars Tveen.
A new European agenda for climate resilience
As the 2019 EU elections loom and a new European Commission takes office, climate action can become a key driver of a reformed EU project for more solidarity, protection and innovation, writes Luca Bergamaschi.
Time for EU bank to comply with EU’s climate objectives
As the European Investment Bank (EIB) holds a meeting in Brussels today (25 February) to consult the public on its new energy policy, Wendel Trio reflects on the role the EU’s bank should have in tackling the climate crisis.
Green transition: ECB and budgetary authorities should face their responsibilities
Reforming the rules for coordinating budgetary and economic policies in the eurozone is a necessity to conciliate economic, social and climate objectives, write Olivier Bodin and Michael Vincent.
Greece’s energy future on the line
Lignite has been the driving force of the Greek economy for the last six decades and the government intends to keep it that way, even though this most polluting of fuels is now becoming uncompetitive, writes Nikos Mantzaris.
European public banks continue financing coal bonanza
The EIB and EBRD have been channelling billions of euros in public money to fossil fuels dependent companies, hampering the international community's efforts to tackle climate change, writes Anna Roggenbuck.
Spain to lead the energy transition in Europe?
The creation of the new ministry for ecological transition in Spain brings fresh air not only at the national level but also at the EU level as Spain can give a push in the fight against climate change, writes Ana Barreira.
The EU needs to walk the talk on the Paris Climate Agreement
The EU’s Energy Union Governance Regulation is not an EU-level invention or a bureaucratic imposition from Brussels. Instead, it is to a large extent an attempt to translate what several of the EU’s individual member states are already doing on climate and energy policy, writes Lola Vallejo.
Strong climate action will help combat Europe’s urban air crisis
New research published this week in “The Lancet Planetary Health” reveals a promising path towards clean, healthy air: strong climate change policy, writes Dr. Melissa C. Lott.
Energy efficiency: Getting the full picture
The Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), adopted in 2012 and currently under review, has been a key milestone to help deliver energy savings in Europe. But the reality is that we are not there yet in terms of primary energy savings, writes Hans Korteweg.
What the UN deal on shipping emissions means
Last week’s difficult deal on shipping emissions at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) brought some good news. The not-so-good news is that there is far too little acceptance of the need for immediate action, writes Bill Hemmings.
New climate strategy will set out a pathway to meet higher targets
Last week, EU leaders sent a clear message to the European Commission to ramp up its work to implement the Paris Agreement and accelerate the ongoing transition away from fossil fuels, writes Wendel Trio.
Breaking the glass ceiling of EU climate policy
The request from EU leaders to see an update of the European Commission's 2050 low-carbon roadmap mandates a higher level of ambition from Europe on meeting climate goals also in 2030, writes Brook Riley.
Avoiding common traps in energy savings (mis)calculation
Inconsistencies in the calculation of energy savings could derail global sustainability efforts, warn Tom Machinchick and Dr. Andreas Hermelink. Together, they investigate the effect of non-persistence in energy conservation measures on meeting the Paris Agreement and other carbon emissions goals.
To finance the energy transition, EU leaders must restore their ambition
The investment case for low-carbon energy is strong: increased economic growth and jobs, reduced transition risks, and the most cost-effective pathway to realising the goals of the Paris Agreement. Why, then, are EU energy ministers so reluctant to provide the legislative framework required to shift the trillions? writes Stephanie Pfeifer.
Decarbonising Europe: Matching aspiration with action
With renewable electricity costs going through the floor, the EU should increase its 2030 targets and aim for close to zero carbon electricity by 2040. But while power decarbonisation is crucially important, it will not be sufficient to deliver a truly zero carbon economy, writes Adair Turner.
The case for a price floor in the EU ETS
The recently adopted reform of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is insufficient to trigger cost-efficient decarbonisation of the economy, argue Christian Flachsland and Anna Leipprand. A carbon floor price that starts at a significant level and rises over time would address the problem, they write.
Closing the loopholes in the EU’s centerpiece climate law
EU member states can enable the upscaling of good examples of local climate action by closing loopholes in the Effort Sharing Regulation, a centerpiece of the EU's climate policy, write Claire Roumet and Femke de Jong.