In a draft report by the European Parliament’s Committee on Environment (ENVI) to be voted on in October ahead of COP30 in Bélem (Brazil), MEPs say it is essential for the EU to “lead by example” and submit its climate commitments for 2035 “as soon as possible and well before COP30”.
Like the other parties to the Paris Agreement on climate, the EU is expected to submit its ‘nationally determined contribution’ (NDC), which sets out a target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2035, before the COP in November.
The EU has not yet done so, as it is waiting to adopt its own emissions reduction target for 2040, which will enable it to submit its proposal for 2035.
In its draft report, the European Parliament stresses the need to adopt “a science-based EU climate target for 2040 in accordance with the European Climate Law and in keeping with the conclusions of the first GST [global stocktake]”.
Initially expected in February, the legislative proposal for the 2040 target is now due to be unveiled “before the summer”, as stated by the European Commissioner for Climate Action, Wopke Hoekstra, so that this new target can be included in the amended European climate legislation.
The target of a 90% reduction in emissions compared to 1990 is “the starting point for this discussion”, explained a Commission spokesperson.
This target could be accompanied by potential flexibilities, which have been presented to the Member States. The possibility of taking international carbon credits into account is still on the negotiating table (see EUROPE 13621/10), as is the possibility of including negative emissions resulting from carbon capture and storage or of considering a more flexible emissions reduction trajectory, depending on the industry sector.
Unlike the 2040 target, the submission of the 2035 target within the ‘NDC’ will not require a separate legislative proposal. It will simply be submitted by the Presidency of the EU Council and the European Commission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This ‘NDC’ will require a political mandate from the Member States before being submitted “and we will also take into account the views of the European Parliament”, explained the Commission spokesperson.
The European Parliament’s draft report, published on 20 May, also stresses the importance of Parliament’s role as co-legislator at COP30, and states that it expects “to be allowed to attend EU coordination meetings (...) and to be guaranteed access to all preparatory documents”.
MEPs also stress the EU’s responsibility and strategic interest in “helping to fill that gap” left by the United States’ retreat from international financing for the fight against climate change.
Compromise amendments to the draft report are expected on 26 June. It is then expected to be put to the vote in the Committee on Environment on 2 October, before a plenary vote at the second October plenary session.
To see the draft European Parliament: https://aeur.eu/f/h1s (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)