EU Climate and Energy package

11.25.00am GMT Mon 28th Jan 2008

On Wednesday 23rd January the Commission announced its proposal for European legislation to prolong the EU's Emissions Trading scheme beyond 2012 after the present Kyoto Protocol expires. The EU is currently committed to reducing by its 1990 emissions by 20% by the year 2020. Our existing Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) covers the large business emitters, and accounts for about 50% of all Europe's emissions.

Under the new package, Europe must cut greenhouse gas emissions by 20%, produce 20% of its energy from renewable sources and increase energy efficiency by 20% before the year 2020. This is called "20/20/20 by 2020," according to President Jose Manuel Barroso.

Carbon allowances will be set at EU level not member state level in future so that national governments cannot cheat by favouring their own companies with over-generous allowances. This will tighten the ETS. Sectors not covered by the ETS will receive "binding national emissions targets" with richer countries receiving stricter targets than poorer ones.

According to EUObserver, the commission has set a target of 10% use of biofuels in transport, despite the objections of environmental groups and development NGOs, who worry that biofuels actually increase greenhouse gas emissions and undermine food security in the developing world.

The role of carbon capture and storage (CCS) is of particular importance to the Commission. This is a new technology that captures carbon from power plants and stores it in underground geological formations or deep oceans instead of releasing it into the atmosphere.

There is much controversy around the package which is unlikely to be achieved before 2009.

Bill Newton Dunn MEP tells us that a scientist, who was in Bali last month for the world negotiations, says that what the world is beginning to experience is not like mini-variations in climate which occurred in the Middle Ages and Mediaeval times, but that our planet is heading back to atmospheric conditions not seen for half a million years and that is why the predicament is so serious and action is so vital. At Bali, he said, the mood had at least moved to acceptance of the need for Adaptation i.e. adapting to the inevitable worsening weather and sea-levels. But while the Europeans were inclined to preach at Bali, the non-government Americans, who were there but not representing the presidency, are already getting on with adapting to the coming changes faster than we are in Europe.