The environmental association Zero lamented the “lack of ambition” of the European Union (EU) in the carbon market review negotiations, noting that the “opportunity to strengthen” the “climate ambition” was “lost”. “The result of the negotiations reached in the early hours of Saturday is clear: the EU missed the opportunity to reinforce climate ambition, continuing, instead, allowing the distribution of millions of free pollution permits to the industry”, criticize the environmentalists, in statement.
On Saturday, after 30 hours of negotiations, MEPs and EU Member States reached an agreement on a broad reform of the European carbon market, fundamental to the bloc’s climate plan of 27, which includes the phasing out of ” pollution rights” assigned to industry and plans to charge for heating emissions from buildings and road transport, with a price cap to avoid a burden on families.
“The negotiators did not go beyond the level of ambition proposed by the Commission and resigned themselves to an emission reduction of around 62% for the European Emissions Trading (ETS) sectors by 2030. This value is clearly below the 70% reduction required for the EU, a historic contributor to the current climate crisis we find ourselves in, to meet its fair share of limiting global warming to 1.5°C, as enshrined in the Paris Agreement.” Zero points out.
The association highlights that “in the context of the war in Ukraine, there is no doubt that a strong climate policy is a fundamental pillar to accelerate the EU’s energy transition and free Europe from its dependence on fossil fuels.”
But, he explains, “the co-legislators chose to continue feeding the industry free pollution permits, which will only be fully phased out in 2034,” a decision that, Zero argues, “not only delays emissions reductions in highly polluting areas sectors of CELE (cement, steel, aluminum, etc.), since it tarnishes the credibility of the entire mechanism”.
This is because, the same statement continues, “while ordinary citizens are expected to pay for emissions from buildings and road transport, EU governments continue to hand out hundreds of billions in free allowances for the industry”.
Environmentalists argue that the application of the polluter pays principle is “absolutely crucial”, “at the same time as dedicated support to the transition of low-income families is directed through the Social Fund for Climate Action”. However, for Zero, “it is still positive that the co-legislators have determined that the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will apply from 2026, with a reduction of almost half of the free licenses attributed to the CBAM sectors by 2030”. .
The association further argues that “all revenue generated by CELE and spent directly by member states (…) should not be used to finance any investment in fossil or nuclear fuels.” Therefore, it considers that “within this framework, the negotiators took a step in the right direction, strengthening the rules under which Member States must spend the large revenues generated by the auction of CELE licenses, making mandatory the requirement that Member States channel 100% of revenues to climate action”.
In the text, ecologists also regret that the European institutions have left “the door open to investments in gas” worth 4,800 million euros for the production of energy with fossil gas, and even more in cogeneration from fossil gas. “With this misstep, the EU risks perpetuating the use of fossil gas in sunk investments, missing the opportunity to channel every penny towards truly clean and future-proof solutions: energy efficiency, modernization of energy networks and 100 % renewable”, concludes the association.
Source: Observadora
