EU Parliament: voting on “climate law”. Guteland (rapporteur), if passed “it will be a time-defining moment”

The goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 for the EU is – maybe – about to be enforced. This will be disclosed tomorrow, as soon as the results of the voting round that is taking place at the European Parliament about a set of measures that, if passed, will be “a time-defining moment”, arrive, because “it will be a change of pace in the European environmental policies and a strong message” beyond the EU borders, MEP Jytte Guteland (in the photo), rapporteur of the climate law, stated today. The set of measures includes, first ad foremost, a law that imposes carbon neutrality not just in Europe as a whole, but also in each single Country. While it may be laborious for some States that are most dependent on coal, Guteland explained, “walking together will help everyone make an effective transition, without anyone being left behind”. A “Co2 budget” will be required, in other words knowing the details of the trend of emissions and how much each State has still available; an interim target (2040) will be required to assess the progress made in the transition to neutrality through an “impact assessment”. And, according to such measure, “a European council for climate change” will be required too which, without replacing the national or international institutions, should be in charge, among other things, of “assessing the compliance of all European policies with the climate goals”, Guteland went on. A widely debated issue is the goal of reducing emissions by 60% before 2030 (the EU Commission’s proposed 55%): according to Guteland, raising the bar is essential to “align with what science says”.
Valentina Bombelli