“Adaptation is no longer an option. It is necessary, given the current global warming situation”, declared the European Commissioner for Climate Action, Wopke Hoekstra, on Tuesday 20 May, at the 4th EU Mission Forum on Adaptation to Climate Change in Wrocław (Poland), where he had visited the previous day.
In view of the increasing number of climatic disasters and their varied nature - floods, droughts, heat waves - the European Commission is preparing, as the Commissioner pointed out, a European Climate Adaptation Plan to integrate resilience into all sectors and all regions.
The plan will aim to incorporate lessons learned from previous crises, “such as here in Poland”, said Mr Hoekstra, where flooding occurred, as in the rest of Central Europe, in September 2024.
In this context, the Commissioner praised the efforts of the Polish Climate Minister, Paulina Hennig-Kloska, and the natural infrastructure projects implemented in Lower Silesia.
The cooperation between local authorities, the Polish government and the European Union also emerged as a model to be followed, “something that can be achieved when the local, national and European levels genuinely work hand in hand”, emphasised the Commissioner.
On the subject of European climate neutrality targets, Wopke Hoekstra, who listed them (a 55% reduction in emissions by 2030, a target still being defined for 2040 and neutrality by 2050), welcomed the more ambitious initiatives of some cities, such as Wrocław, which are aiming for neutrality as early as 2030, given the speed of the crisis.
“Of course, it would be very good news if certain companies, regions or cities decided to go beyond this specific target”, he said.
However, he noted the tension between ambition and feasibility, advocating a necessary alignment between the two.
With regard to the financing of post-disaster aid, the Commissioner confirmed that the Commission was currently examining Poland’s application, alongside five other dossiers.
He acknowledged the need to reassess the ways in which the Solidarity Fund is mobilised, and called for greater responsiveness and greater resources to respond to the growing number of crises. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)