PURPOSE: to set out the blueprint for tackling global
climate change beyond 2020 the Paris Protocol.
BACKGROUND: according to the latest findings of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), without urgent
action, climate change will bring severe, pervasive and
irreversible impacts on all the world's people and ecosystems.
Limiting dangerous rises in global average temperature to below
2°C compared with pre-industrial levels will require
substantial and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions by
all countries.
This global transition to low emissions can be
achieved without compromising growth and jobs, and can provide
significant opportunities to revitalise economies in Europe and
globally. Action to tackle climate change also brings significant
benefits in terms of public well-being. Delaying this transition
will, however, raise overall costs and narrow the options for
effectively reducing emissions and preparing for the impacts of
climate change.
All countries need to act urgently and
collectively. Since 1994, the Parties
to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) have focused on this challenge, resulting in more than 90
countries, both developed and developing, pledging to curb their
emissions by 2020. However, these pledges are insufficient to
achieve the below 2°C objective. For these reasons, in 2012,
the UNFCCC Parties launched negotiations towards a new legally
binding agreement applicable to all Parties that will put the world
on track to achieve the below 2°C objective. The 2015
Agreement is to be finalised in Paris in December 2015 and
implemented from 2020.
Possible agreement in Paris: the progress made at the recent climate conference
in Lima brings a robust agreement in Paris within reach. A first
full draft text of the 2015 Agreement was also developed,
reflecting the positions of all Parties on all the elements under
negotiation.
This communication responds to the decisions taken in
Lima, and is a key element in implementing the Commission's
priority of building a resilient Energy Union. This
communication prepares the EU for the last round of negotiations
before the Paris conference in December 2015.
CONTENT: in particular, this
communication:
- translates the decision taken at the European Summit
in October 2014 into the EU's proposed emissions target -
its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) to be
submitted by the end of the first quarter of 2015;
- proposes that all UNFCCC Parties submit their INDCs
well in advance of the Paris conference. The EU, China, the US and
other G20 countries, as well as high and middle income countries
should be in a position to do so by the first quarter of 2015.
Greater flexibility should be provided to Least Developed Countries
(LDCs);
- sets out a vision for a transparent and dynamic
legally binding agreement, containing fair and ambitious
commitments from all Parties based on evolving global economic and
geopolitical circumstances. In aggregate these commitments - based
on scientific evidence - should put the world on track to reduce
global emissions by at least 60% below 2010 levels by 2050.
Should there be a gap in the level of ambition set in Paris, this
should be addressed by devising a work programme starting in 2016
working closely with the GCF to identify additional action to
reduce emissions;
- proposes that the 2015 Agreement should be in the
form of a Protocol under the UNFCCC. Major economies, in
particular the EU, China and the US, should show political
leadership by joining the Protocol as early as possible. It
should enter into force as soon as countries with a collective
total of 80% of current global emissions have ratified it. Under
the new Protocol, climate finance, technology development and
transfer, and capacity building should promote universal
participation and facilitate the efficient and effective
implementation of strategies to reduce emissions and adapt to the
adverse effects of climate change;
- underlines that the International Civil Aviation
Organisation (ICAO), the International Maritime Organisation (IMO)
and the Montreal Protocol should act to effectively regulate
emissions from international aviation and shipping and the
production and consumption of fluorinated gases before the end of
2016;
- highlights how other EU policies such as, trade,
scientific research, innovation and technological cooperation,
economic and development cooperation, disaster risk reduction and
environment could reinforce the EUs international climate
policy; and
- is complemented by a climate diplomacy action
plan jointly developed by the European External Action Service
and the Commission. The action plan is aimed at scaling up EU
outreach and building alliances with ambitious international
partners in the run up to the Paris conference.
Next steps: the
Commission will organise an international conference to
improve mutual understanding of the range of INDCs and the adequacy
of their collective ambition, and facilitate an open exchange of
views prior to the Paris conference. This conference will aim
to bring together partner countries, key experts from academia,
think-tanks and international organisations and will take place by
November 2015.
By mid-2015, the Commission will also start to
present legislative proposals to implement the 2030 climate
and energy framework to the European Parliament and the
Council.
It will continue to mainstream climate change action
into its economic and development cooperation; take initiatives to
work closer together with Member States in the delivery of climate
relevant development finance; and take better advantage of the
openness of its scientific research and innovation programmes to
support its international partners, assisting them in preparing to
carry out their commitments under the new Protocol.
Against this background, the Commission invites the
European Parliament and the Council to endorse the proposed
approach as soon as possible.
Annex and working document: it should be noted that some aspects of this
communication are set out in further detail in the accompanying
Staff Working Document. An annexed table presents the EU 2030
target and intended nationally determined contribution which aims
to achieve at least 40% domestic reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions in 2030.