Wildfires - Photo © European Union 2026

As catastrophic wildfires sweep across Southern Europe, WWF warns that the EU is sleepwalking into a permanent wildfire crisis while simultaneously weakening key environmental protections that help safeguard people, economies and nature from climate impacts.

Climate change - Photo by Pixabay

Environment Ministers have agreed on a 2040 climate target: a 90% reduction in emissions in comparison to 1990. On paper, this might not sound too bad, but in reality, the reliance on international offsets up to 5% and the inclusion of an emergency break for carbon sinks could reduce the actual domestic target to lower than 85%.