EU leaders vow to slash carbon emissions by 40 per cent by 2030 but do not
impose national renewable energy targets
By Emily Gosden, Energy Editor
Britain will no longer be forced to build wind and solar farms from 2020,
under a new EU climate change deal that leaves countries free to choose how
to cut their carbon emissions.
EU leaders vowed on Friday to cut Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions by at
least 40 per cent by 2030, against 1990 levels, in an agreement that
ministers say will bring the rest of Europe in line with the UK’s existing
commitments.
Following UK lobbying, the deal does not impose binding national targets
for renewable energy or energy efficiency.
Current legally-binding targets require the UK to generate 15 per cent of
its energy from renewable sources by 2020 – in practice requiring about 30
per cent of the power sector to come from renewable sources.
Critics say this has forced the UK down an unnecessarily expensive and
unsightly method of going green by building heavily-subsidised wind farms,
solar farms and wood-burning biomass plants.
Some EU countries had wanted similar targets for 2030, while others such as
Germany had also sought binding targets to force countries to cut their
energy consumption.
In the end the EU set a binding target for 27 per cent renewable energy and
an indicative target for 27 per cent energy efficiency improvements, but
crucially both only at EU level.
“These targets will be achieved while fully respecting the member states’
freedom to determine their energy mix. Targets will not be translated into
nationally binding targets,” the agreement said.
Ed Davey, the energy and climate change secretary said the deal was “good
for consumers because we can decarbonise at the lowest possible cost using
a diverse mix of technologies”.
He said: “This is a historic moment. Europe has sent a clear and firm
message to the world that ambitious climate action is needed now. True to
our word, we have delivered a highly ambitious EU climate target while also
significantly strengthening Europe’s energy security by making us less
reliant on imported energy. This morning only five countries in Europe had
climate targets post 2020, now 28 countries do.
“The UK has been leading the climate debate pushing for an ambitious deal
in Europe and by building alliances and working constructively with our
European partners, we’ve agreed a package of measures that meet all the
UK’s top priorities.”
Gareth Stace, head of climate and environment policy at manufacturers’
group EEF, said: “The EU now has an emissions target broadly in line with
the UK’s own ambitions, helping level the playing field for UK
manufacturers and strengthening the market for low-carbon goods and services.
“EU leaders have signalled that they recognise the importance of protecting
carbon-intensive industries threatened by overseas competitors from the
full costs of the EU emissions trading system. But, we will be watching
closely over the coming months to ensure these fine words translate into
real action to improve what is currently a rather problematic protective
system.”
But Richard Black, director of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit,
said the deal did not go far enough to tackle climate change.
“The EU deal was probably the best compromise that progressive countries
could hope for, given concerns of various nations about coal-burning and
competitiveness.
“However, it is also a compromise with the climate system and with the
needs of future generations. It’s not at all clear that this deal will
allow the EU to meet its long-term target of virtually eliminating carbon
emissions by mid-century, which science suggests is necessary for limiting
global warming to 2C.”
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