Brussels, 12/02/2007 (Agence Europe) - No longer may it be said that Germany, as current President of the EU, is setting a bad example on greenhouse gas emissions trading, after its environment minister, Sigmar Gabriel, announced last week that it would accept the emissions ceiling, lowered by the Commission, in its second emissions quotas allocation plan for the period 2008-2012 and would not appeal to the European Court of Justice.
“We accept the demands of the EU to show that we support the European trading system,” Mr Gabriel said.
The agreement between Germany and the Commission is on an annual ceiling for emissions of 543.1 million tonnes of CO² (Berlin proposed 465 million tonnes). It brings an end to a quarrel lasting several weeks between Brussels and Berlin, Germany justifying its figure through a different method of calculation which used 2005 as the only reference year.
When asked to comment on the news, Barbara Helfferich, spokeswoman for Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas, told press in Brussels on 9 February that the Commission welcomed Germany's decision not to refer the matter to the Court and to commit itself strongly to combating climate change through the European emissions quota exchange system. Germany, she said, had recognised the importance of the system. The Commission has examined the changes made by Germany to its original plan, and has written to inform the national authorities that some changes would be acceptable depending on further information being provided, Ms Helfferich said.
She refused, however, to say if recourse to 20% flexible mechanisms (purchase of emissions credits through projects to reduce emissions in non-EU developing countries or countries with economies on transition) was among the acceptable changes. (an)