The EU should commit to net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050 at the UN Conference and step up its emissions’ reduction ambition for 2030, said the Environment Committee on Wednesday.
Ahead of the COP25 UN Climate Change Conference in Madrid in December, the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee approved on Wednesday a resolution calling on the EU to submit its long-term strategy to reach climate neutrality at the latest by 2050 to the UN Convention on Climate Change as soon as possible. This would guarantee the EU maintains its world leadership in the fight against climate change.
They also highlighted the need for the EU to raise its ambition level for 2030 in order to reach the 2050 target. MEPs expect the European Green Deal announced by European Commission President-elect Ursula Von Der Leyen to include a target of 55% emissions reductions by 2030.
More financial support to fight climate change
EU countries should at least double their contributions to the international Green Climate Fund, the committee says. MEPs stress that EU member states are the largest providers of public climate finance and that the EU’s budget should fully comply with its international commitments. They also note that actual pledges by developed countries still fall short of the collective goal of mobilising 100 billion USD per year as of 2020.
Finally, they urgently call on all EU countries to phase out all direct and indirect fossil fuel subsidies by 2020 and on the European Investment Bank to end lending to fossil fuel projects except for gas when used in combination with renewables. The global action made during the next 10 years will impact the future of humanity for the next 10 000 years, they say.
«The Environment Committee is showing the way for Europe to be the first carbon-neutral continent in 2050» said the Chair of the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee Pascal Canfin (Renew Europe, FR). «While the United States confirmed yesterday its exit from the Paris Agreement, we reaffirmed today in the European Parliament’s Environment Committee that we want Europe to be serious about the fight against climate change» he added.
