Pollution – Photo by Johannes Plenio from Pexels
(BRUSSELS) – The EU Commission proposed Tuesday a 90% cut in EU greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990 levels, but has dropped reference to a 30% cut in non-CO2 emissions from agriculture.
The Commission was releasing an impact assessment and communication on the 2040 climate targets, alongside the Industrial Carbon Management Strategy (ICMS), both seen as crucial in paving the way for climate neutrality within the European Union.
In the Communication, the Commission reiterates the EU’s commitment to reaching ‘net zero’ CO2 emissions by 2050.
In summary, with its 2040 climate targets impact assessment, the Commission has analysed the Union’s different pathways to climate neutrality. Overall the Commission researched three options for emissions reduction, all between -75% and -95%.
It says that while the major part of this effort will come from reducing current emissions levels in the coming years, there will also be a need for technologies that can capture CO2 or remove it directly from the atmosphere and then store or utilise it.
These technologies, it goes on, will focus on sectors where emissions are particularly difficult or costly to reduce, such as the process emissions in cement or waste-to-energy for example.
In the Net-Zero Industry Act, the Commission has proposed that the EU develops at least 50 million tonnes per year of CO2 storage capacity by 2030. Based on the impact assessment on the EU recommended climate target for 2040, it says this figure will need to grow to around 280 million tonnes by 2040.
The Industrial Carbon Management Communication provides details on how these technologies could contribute to reducing emissions by 90% by 2040 and reaching climate neutrality by 2050.
The WWF is none too pleased with the impact assessment, saying there is no sign of ‘climate emergency’ in the Commission’s 2040 pathway. It notes the Commission has “rejected the option of achieving climate neutrality by 2040, and it places undue reliance on speculative solutions to address all industrial emissions”.
European Consumer Organisation BEUC notes that the Communication now does not include reference to a 30% cut in non-CO2 emissions from agriculture. While sections recognising the role of lifestyle changes, including dietary shifts, in bringing greenhouse gases emissions down, have also been dropped.
Though the Communication still hints at the role of the food industry in making healthy diets more accessible and affordable to consumers. BEUC is calling on the Commission to address food, an untapped sector, as part of its climate targets and swiftly publish long-awaited measures to make our food systems sustainable.
Industrial Carbon Management Communication
Communication on the 2040 climate target
