A potentially marathon meeting will be held by European environment ministers in Luxembourg on Tuesday 9 October, given how difficult it will be to reach a general approach on the proposal for a regulation aimed at establishing standards for the reduction of CO² emissions from new cars and vans after 2021. The Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU, however, is determined to reach consensus in the hope of starting talks with Parliament from 10 October.
The day following publication of the special IPCC report, the Environment Council will focus on combating climate change. Debates will be held in succession on CO² emissions from new light vehicles, from heavy vehicles and on preparations for the COP 24 in Katowice (3-14 December) in order to finalise the EU’s negotiating position. The session will be chaired by Elisabeth Köstinger of Austria.
CO² from cars and vans. On the basis of a compromise by the Presidency, ministers will hold a public debate from the morning – and no doubt returning to it in the afternoon – in order to seek an agreement on the level of ambition for the November 2017 proposal for a regulation aimed at reducing CO² emissions from the European fleet of new passenger cars and vans after 2021, as well as at encouraging innovation and electro-mobility. The opinions of the delegations differ considerably (see EUROPE 12106).
The target of reaching a 35% reduction in emissions by 2030 is on the table but it is not certain it will be able to remain there given, in particular, the refusal by Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel to go beyond the 30% proposed by the Commission. The 14 delegations, however, support 40% or more.
"If we have a clear majority, then we could reach 35% but nothing is set in stone. It is a difficult issue. It will take time", a European source confided on Monday. Despite the fact that seeking the broadest possible consensus is a priority, resorting to qualified majority vote could be an option, the same source said. Nonetheless, the Presidency rules out referring the matter to European Council level, even though the prime ministers of countries such as Bulgaria and Slovakia have underlined the importance of the issue.
COP 24. The Council is expected to adopt conclusions on the position to be defended by the EU at the COP 24 in Katowice, underlining how urgent it is to take action to step up the global effort. Conclusions will cover all key subjects except for the "financing" section on which the Ecofin Council will give its stance in November. Ministers will hold a debate on the EU’s level of ambition. The Austrian Presidency deems that the publication of the IPCC report on the target of 1.5°C of average global warming is particularly appropriate. "Everyone will have this in mind. We must show that the EU is ready to take action", a senior official stressed on Monday. Nonetheless, at this stage, it will be out of the question to review the European objective upward to attain 45% reduction in emissions by 2030 compared to 1990.
CO² from heavy vehicles. At the end of the afternoon, the Council will hold a policy debate on last May’s proposal for a regulation aimed at imposing CO² emissions reduction standards on heavy vehicles for the first time. Ministers will give their views on the relevance of the level of ambition proposed and of supercredits, according to a questionnaire prepared by the Austrian Presidency (see EUROPE 12104).
COP 14 on biodiversity. The Council will adopt conclusions on the EU’s negotiating position at the 14th conference of the parties to the convention on biodiversity (Sharm El Sheikh, November) (see EUROPE 12111). In particular, it is expected to express its deep concern about the threats weighing upon biodiversity and ecosystem services. It will speak of the need to convene a summit of heads of state and/or government on biodiversity in 2020.
Eastern Partnership. During lunch, ministers will discuss environmental and climate priorities with their counterparts from the six Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine) as part of the follow-up to their joint declaration of 2016 (see EUROPE 11648). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)