The climate change law will shield low-emission urban areas with a clause

The Ministry for the Ecological Transition led by Vice President Teresa Ribera wants to make it difficult to reverse low-emission zones in cities, such as “Madrid Central”. To this end, the latest draft of the draft climate change law includes a clause that will require that all areas of more than 50,000 inhabitants that want to reverse the measure, need a prior report from the central administration.

“Low-emission zones are essential (…) It is something that we want to strengthen, harden,” explained Vice President Teresa Ribera before attending the Environmental Advisory Council to present the text. “Madrid Central is inevitable with the new law,” he said.

The report that must be prepared in the event of a possible weakening of the low emission zones will be issued by the competent authority in the environment, either at the state or regional level, depending on who is responsible for the affected area.

The latest draft of the Climate Change Law also includes the obligation to create low-emission zones in municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants and in island territories by 2023. That is, towns such as Toledo, Gandía, Coslada or Ávila should implement traffic restriction measures in the coming years. They will also have to promote measures to encourage the “carsharing” of electric vehicles.

The text, however, has not been tightened in terms of the sale and registration of combustion vehicles and will conform to “the lines” set by the European Union, according to Ribera. Today it establishes that the necessary measures will be adopted, in accordance with European regulations, so that new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, excluding those registered as historic vehicles, not intended for commercial uses, gradually reduce their emissions, so that no later than the year 2040 they are vehicles with emissions of 0gCO2 / km.

The draft law is in its last phase before being approved in the Council of Ministers and starting its parliamentary processing, something that could happen “more in March”, according to Teresa Ribera.

Source: ABC