Brussels, 21/09/2015 (Agence Europe) - The EU's negotiating mandate for the (Paris, 30 November-11 December) COP21 decided on Friday 18 September by the EU Environment Council has been welcomed for its level of ambition but some NGOs and sectors of industry have been disappointed by it (see EUROPE 11392).
The NGOs criticise the lack of clarity about how to achieve the EU goal, particularly with regard to implementation of the long-term target of zero emissions by 2100 and funding assistance to developing countries. Industry would have liked a tougher wording adopted with regard to all the world's major economies.
CAN Europe (Climate Action Network Europe) is delighted that the EU stipulated total elimination of greenhouse gas emissions but criticise the fact that the negotiating mandate does not provide details about how the EU's contribution will achieve this objective.
According to the latter, it is a very good thing that the EU is continuing to make an energetic call for a global transparent and binding regime. Wendel Trio, the director of CAN Europe, stated: “We welcome the fact that the EU continues to call for a binding and transparent international climate regime.” He also said that “the call for a phase-out of emissions from all the EU member states is an important signal that the EU still wants to reach a meaningful Paris agreement, which should provide an action plan for a transition to a fossil fuel free economy. The unanimous decision to end carbon pollution is what we expect from leaders at a time of a climate crisis”. The mandate does not provide any details about how climate action will increase, to ensure the transition towards a de-carbonated economy that is on the scale and pace required for avoiding the worst consequences of climate change;-it says nothing about the additional measures the EU will take before 2020;-neither does it say anything about how the EU will increase its 2030 target; we do not have any clarity on how and when the EU will increase its 2030 climate target, “which does not represent its fair share of the global effort for tackling climate change”;- Ministers also failed to provide clarity on what the EU has to offer to developing countries in terms of provision of climate finance for empowering them in their efforts to tackle climate change as well as support for adaptation and loss and damage. Trio argues that this lack of clarity undermines the EU's leadership role in the negotiations.
Carbon Market Watch deplores the fact that with just 80 days to go until COP 21, the EU has stuck to an offer to reduce its emissions to at least 40% by 2030, which it believes insufficient. Kat Watts, a member of this NGO network, argued: “By supporting a vague target mechanism rather than a five-year period commitment that is legally binding, the EU is concealing the fact that there will not be any consensus for increasing its inadequate objective”. She also deplored the fact that EU 28 Environment Ministers were unable to establish a common timetable for increasing the member states' targets for mitigation, as well as robust criteria for regulating the way in which the carbon markets are used.
On the other hand, she welcomed the fact that ministers had highlighted the need to regulate as soon as possible and efficiently international maritime and civil aviation transport in an effort to respect the 2°C target. Watts explained that they welcomed the strong message addressed to the IMO and the ICAO, “these two UN agencies must pick up the pace to reach an agreement on measures and implement them by assuming their fair share of the global 2°C target”.
BusinessEurope said that the negotiating mandate “goes in the right direction” but argue that they should have called on other major emitting countries to make comparable efforts. Markus J. Beyrer, the director general of BusinessEurope, said it lacks a clear call for comparable efforts to be made by major emissions producers outside the EU. He also said that COP 21 in Paris had to provide a decisive turning point for European industry. He said they wanted an international goal to be on the same lines of the efforts that have already been made in Europe. He argued that the result should be a universal and ambitious agreement that guaranteed that the rest of the world followed this example and that they needed to establish rules that would guarantee a fair playing field at a world level for EU industry.
It should be pointed out that Christiana Figueres, the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, warned last week in Brussels that the 62 Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) on the table, account for 70% of global emissions but are far from being enough to respect the 2°C target (see EUROPE 11390). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)