In view of the 17th March Environment Council exchange of views on “decarbonisation efforts in the area of climate post-2030”, CAN Europe has written to ministers to call on them to support an ambitious, robust and socially-just post-2030 climate policy architecture.
This is the moment for Europe to pave the way for transforming its economy to secure future resilience and well-being. As the fastest-warming continent in the world, Europe is already experiencing rising costs from extreme heat, floods, droughts and ecosystem loss, affecting public health, infrastructure, food systems and economic stability today. The European Environment Agency (EEA) indicates that between 1980 and 2023 weather- and climate-related extreme events caused over 240,000 fatalities and cost EUR2023 738 billion in the EU-27, with over EUR2023 162 billion from 2021 to 2023 alone. Delaying or weakening climate action now will not reduce costs for society or the economy; instead it will dramatically increase them, while further exposing Europe to fossil fuel price volatility and climate-related shocks. On the contrary, as highlighted by the European Climate Risk Assessment, acting timely and decisively will bring a wide range of benefits: following a more ambitious pathway, the EU could gain at least €1 trillion by 2030. In this context, European citizens regard climate action as a key priority, as confirmed by the latest EU barometer.
The deregulation agenda promoted around the Antwerp Industry Summit and the February informal European Council risks repeating the mistakes of the past – delaying investment, deepening fossil dependence and leaving Europe behind in the global race for clean industrial leadership. This debate cannot be further detached from reality; rolling back climate and environmental policy will punish the early movers, undermine the investment certainty Europe needs to modernise its industrial base – precisely the transformation called for in the report The future of European competitiveness by Professor Draghi and promised through the Clean Industrial Deal.
CAN Europe has consistently argued that, to align with the 1.5°C temperature limit and equity, the EU should achieve domestic net zero emissions by 2040 at the latest, based on at least 92% gross reductions compared to 1990 levels. On top of this domestic ambition level, the EU should also significantly increase support to Global South countries for mitigation, adaptation and loss and damage including through international climate finance (which should not be confused with and replaced by international carbon credits transactions under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement) to fulfil the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) $300 billion target. Unfortunately, the lack of ambition in Europe did not allow for an adequate 2040 target. This makes it even more important that the policy architecture for achieving that goal post-2030 provides predictability, credibility and environmental integrity.