EU firms up negotiating position ahead of climate meeting

BRUSSELS - EU environment ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Wednesday (21 October) adopted firmer EU positions on tackling climate change ahead of the UN conference in Copenhagen this December.

"This should be seen as a sign to the world that the EU is ready for the Copenhagen negotiations," said Swedish environment minister Andreas Carlgren, whose country currently holds the EU presidency.

Wednesday's advances on reaching a co-ordinated EU position ahead of the December negotiations contrast sharply with the failure of EU finance ministers to reach an agreement on climate financing a day earlier.

Financing for developing countries is seen as a vital component to securing a global climate change deal to replace the Kyoto protocol, which expires in 2012.

"I'm strongly disappointed that our colleagues in the finance council did not get an agreement on climate finance. We expect EU leaders meeting on 29 October to reach one," said the EU's environment commissioner Stavros Dimas on Wednesday.

"I'm sure that leaders know that delaying the figures will not make them any less," he added.

Some progress

Amongst the commitments welcomed by environmental NGOs on Wednesday, EU environment ministers agreed to support long-term CO2 emission reductions of 80-95 percent on 1990 levels by the year 2050.

A number of countries had been keen to restrict the reduction to 80 percent, as reflected in the G8 communique agreed at L'Aquila, Italy, earlier this year.

Fresh commitments to make emission reductions in the areas of aviation and shipping - two areas not covered by the Kyoto Protocol - were also welcomed. However the reduction targets of 10 and 20 percent, respectively, on 2005 levels by the year 2020 were seen as insufficient by environmentalists.

The ministers also reaffirmed the EU goal of reducing carbon emissions by 20 percent on 1990 levels by the year 2020, or 30 percent if other developed countries make enough commitments in this area.

But environmental NGO Greenpeace has said that Japanese and Norwegian CO2 commitments are already sufficient for the EU to opt for the higher target.

"If the EU is really committed to Copenhagen and to green investment and green jobs they should give a unilateral commitment to a 30 percent domestic emission target," Joris den Blanken, EU climate policy director for the NGO, told EUobserver.

On Monday, the European Parliament's environment committee adopted a resolution which said that the EU should reduce its emissions by 40% by 2020, in order to act in line with climate science.

Emission allowances

Controversy also surrounds a potential surplus of national emission allowances – known as AAUs – set to be left over from the Kyoto Protocol's 2008-2012 commitment period.

EU ministers did not agree to cancel the surpluses, which will in effect water down emission reduction targets post-2012, but they did acknowledge the allowances could provide a distorting effect in the future.

A Polish proposal allowing member states to keep AAUs but restricting their sale to other countries did not find support amongst a majority of member states.

The environment ministers also agreed conclusions on the safe dismantling of European ships and on the need to place eco-efficiency at the core of the EU's future economic and industrial strategy.