Members of the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) had a first exchange of views on Monday 14 June on the draft report by María Spyráki (EPP, Greece) on the EU’s strategy to reduce methane emissions, the second largest contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide (CO2).
Welcoming the European Commission’s intentions as set out in its strategy presented on 14 October (see EUROPE 12581/9), the report stresses that further reductions in methane emissions - estimated to be as much as 35-37% by 2030 - are needed if the EU is to meet its new climate target of reducing net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 (see EUROPE 12703/1).
To do this, the EU must ensure that its future obligations to reduce methane emissions in the energy sector “cover the whole supply chain”, says Ms Spyráki.
She notes that, according to the Commission, methane emissions released in third countries to produce and transport fossil gas to the EU are between three and eight times the amount of emissions produced within the Union for gas, and even more for oil.
While most members of the ENVI committee welcomed Ms Spyráki’s report, several members stressed the need for a mandatory framework for Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) of methane leaks in the energy sector and for their detection and repair.
The deadline for tabling amendments to the draft report is 21 June.
See the draft report: https://bit.ly/3vhFLR6 (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)