The EC presents its law to dispense with fossil fuels in 2050

The European Commission presented on Wednesday the draft of its proposed Climate Law, one of the main elements of the European Green Deal. In this way, it will initiate the Community processing of this document through the Council and Parliament.

This is a decisive step towards abiding by and developing the content of the Paris Agreement. It is the definitive attempt to end, now by law, the era of fossil fuels.

The main element of the proposal refers to the idea of reducing gas emissions by 2050, according to the document to which this newspaper has had access.

The law sets as a legally binding goal the so-called climate neutrality for the EU in 2050.

This objective assumes that, by 2050, the volume of greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere in the EU (after a significant reduction effort) must be compensated, captured or neutralised by sinks (forests or other technological systems or formulas).

From that date, the volume of gas removals must be greater than the emissions that occur (to achieve a negative net balance).

All this implies the transformation into law of one of the central priorities announced by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, that of making the objective of achieving climate neutrality by 2050 binding.

The target is binding, for all 27 EU countries, but not specifically for each of them individually considered.

The feasibility of reinforcing the current emission reduction target will be explored, to raise it to a minimum of 50%

Secondly, an intermediate target is set before reaching 2050. Thus, the Commission will initiate a review of the 2030 emission reduction target to respond to the ambitious climate neutrality by 2050.

It will be explored, in this context, to strengthen the current gas reduction target, to bring it to a minimum of 50%, although this decrease could reach 55% (always compared to 1990 emissions) while now

However, the draft delays this task for a few months, postponing this decision specifically for study in September, while its legislative application would be carried out in June 2021; all this will presumably not please the most ambitious sectors. There are countries that propose to activate the process.

One of the main elements of the Green Plan promoted by the current President of the European Commission

The Climate Law is one of the main elements of the Green Plan promoted by the current European Commission.

Von der Leyen managed to be elected by the European Parliament in good faith with her speech in favour of climate neutrality; and from that moment on it has been a central task in his career.

This priority passed a delicate moment at the European Union summit in December, when Poland’s resistance prevented all countries from assuming the same goal.

Poland, a major dependent on coal, refused, despite pressure and promises of compensatory funds, to take it on.

Finally, an intermediate solution was achieved, so that the goal of climate neutrality for 2050 was set at EU level but leaving Warsaw free of the compromise.

From that moment on, they have followed the movements to convince the Poles.

One of them is the proposal of the Just Transition Fund, which Brussels wants to provide with 7,500 million.

An intermediate trajectory will also be set for 2030

It also includes the idea of incorporating a trajectory of successive intermediate reduction objectives.

The Commission may adopt by means of a delegated act (procedures allowing the Commission to carry out legislative acts) the intermediate emission reduction trajectory for 2030-2050.

Principles are established to set this trajectory: cost-efficiency, just transition, use of the best available technologies and so on.

States will develop strategies and plans for adaptation to climate change

Member states will also develop climate change adaptation strategies and plans.

Another key point is the review of progress.

From September 2023, progress on the climate neutrality target as well as the consistency of climate policy frameworks with that objective will be reviewed every five years, both at European and national level (taking into account the measures of the Integrated Energy and Climate Plans).

Source: The Vanguard