30/3/2007
Stavros Dimas, Member of the European Commission, responsible for environment “Climate change: European leadership and the role of the European Parliament” European Parliament Environment Committee. Brussels, 27 March 2007

Mr Chairman,

Honourable members,

Thank you for inviting me to come and speak to your Committee again.

Mr Chairman, this is my first visit to the Committee since you took over the chair, so I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate you on your appointment and to wish you every success in your new role. I would also like to thank Mr Florenz for his excellent cooperation over the past two and a half years.

The spring European Council – which followed the northern hemisphere's warmest winter since records began - has marked a historic breakthrough in the fight against climate change.

In endorsing the European Commission's climate change and energy package from January, the heads of state and government have confirmed the EU's global leadership in tackling climate change and set the agenda for a new international agreement that is urgently needed.

Let me straight away thank the European Parliament for the very high level of ambition and determination you demonstrated in your resolution on climate change of 14 February. I would also like to highlight the active contribution of President Pöttering to the debate in Council. This can only have helped to strengthen the European Council's resolve. It is now universally accepted that climate change is happening and that it is caused by man's behaviour. February's report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has underlined, once again, the need for decisive global action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Global warming is accelerating and the average temperature is likely to rise by up to 4 degrees by the end of this century if nothing is done.

The Commission’s 2005 Communication on “Winning the Battle against Global Climate Change” and the Stern Review for the UK government have shown that the benefits of limiting global warming far outweigh the costs of taking action. The Stern Review estimates the long-term costs of doing nothing at between 5% and a staggering 20% of global GDP.

The conclusion is clear: the international community needs to act fast. The next decade or so will determine whether we manage to bring the situation under control or we allow climate change to reach dangerous levels that will threaten our prosperity and the stability of our societies.

The European Union has both the opportunity and the means to lead the global response that is needed to win this battle. The Commission’s climate and energy package provides us with the necessary tools – and I am delighted that it has now been fully endorsed by EU leaders.

The package is unique, both in its integrated approach and in the opportunities it opens up. President Barroso has described it as heralding a new industrial revolution to create the low-carbon economy of the future. It will strengthen not only the fight against climate change but also our energy security and our competitiveness.

The targets proposed by the Commission are essential if we are to prevent global warming from going more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial temperature. This has to be the fundamental objective of any new global agreement because science warns us that any bigger temperature rise will greatly increase the risk of irreversible and possibly disastrous changes. We have a duty to do whatever we can to protect our children and grandchildren from these dangers.

As we stated in our January communication, staying within the 2 degrees limit means that global emissions will need to peak by around the year 2020 and then fall by as much as 50% of 1990 levels by 2050.

The European Council has set out key targets that need to be included in a global and comprehensive new agreement that would take effect after the Kyoto Protocol targets expire in 2012. The group of developed countries must reduce its emissions to 30% below 1990 levels by 2020. The EU has committed itself to take on this target in the context of an international agreement that comprises other industrialised countries.

Developing countries whose emissions are projected to overtake those of developed countries by 2020, should also participate although in a differentiated manner. Those among them that reach a level of economic prosperity similar to developed countries should take on obligatory emissions reduction commitments. These should reflect each country's per capita emissions, its potential to reduce them and its financial capacity.

Naturally, no mandatory reductions would be asked from the least developed countries, which in any case have the lowest emission levels. And as they are also the most vulnerable to climate change, we must increase our cooperation with them to help them minimise the negative impacts of climate change.

The Commission's climate change Communication outlines concrete options for strengthening developing countries' participation in a future regime. These include the possible expansion of Kyoto's clean development mechanism so that emission-saving projects in developing countries can put those countries on a low-emissions path. The Commission also proposes improving access to finance for new energy infrastructure. We will have to be innovative in the way we approach developing countries. In Parliament, some have called for a strong partnership with key developing countries such as China and India. It is certainly worth exploring this avenue.

Let me add that deforestation, an issue we sometimes tend to overlook, will need to be halted within two decades and then reversed. Together with energy efficiency, this has been identified by the Stern review as one of the "low-hanging fruits" that need to be grasped as a part of our global climate response.

The European Union is not waiting for others to take action. Even before negotiations on a global agreement start, the EU leaders have agreed that the EU should make a firm, independent commitment to reduce our emissions by at least 20%. There are compelling reasons for making this independent commitment.

First, this will enhance our leadership position internationally.

In the current climate, countries are waiting for the others to move first. Only EU leadership can break the impasse. Our commitment to act, combined with the growing pressure for action coming from science and public opinion, can be the catalyst for change.

The economic cost of making this independent commitment is limited. Our analysis shows it will cost between 0.02 and 0.09 per cent of the European Union's annual GDP. Compared to the consequences of inaction, this is a reasonable price to pay, especially if the important co-benefits of action in other areas are taken into account. These include increased energy security, efficient use of resources, improved competitiveness through innovation, and significant health benefits from reduced air pollution.

An EU independent commitment will help in another way too. It will give a clear signal to economic operators that we are serious about moving towards a low-carbon economy.

This will provide the long-term certainty that our industry has been asking for. It will create a secure basis for the future of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme and will give industry a clear incentive to invest in low carbon technology beyond 2012.

The targets proposed by the Commission are ambitious but they are reachable and they are affordable. The climate change and energy package contains the tools and means for achieving these emission reductions. They build on the energy action plan approved by EU leaders as well as existing policies such as the emissions trading scheme.

We will save 20% of energy needs by 2020 by improving energy efficiency. The European Council has also committed itself to legally binding targets for raising the share of renewable energies to 20% and of biofuels to 10% by the same deadline of 2020. It has welcomed the Commission's intention to have up to 12 large scale carbon capture and storage demonstration projects in operation by 2015.

These bold decisions have injected fresh momentum into the international debate on climate change. What we have to do now is capitalise on this to achieve an international consensus on further action. To avoid a policy gap after 2012 it is essential that negotiations on a global agreement are launched at the UN ministerial conference on climate change in Bali at the end of the year.

Europe can not wait to take action, and the Commission has certainly not been doing so. As well as the integrated climate and energy package, we have recently come forward with three important new initiatives to address greenhouse gas emissions from transport – the only major sector whose emissions are still rising.

In December we proposed a directive to tackle carbon dioxide emissions from aviation by bringing this sector into the EU emissions trading scheme from 2011. CO2 emissions from aviation have grown almost 90% since 1990, much faster than any other transport sector. By 2020 our approach will save over 180 million tonnes of CO2 every year – equivalent to twice Austria's annual emissions from all sources today.

In January we proposed a revision of the fuel quality directive that, among other things, requires a 10% cut in greenhouse gas emissions from transport fuels by 2020. Cumulatively this will save around 500 million tonnes of CO2, or as much as Spain and Sweden together emit in a whole year.

In February, we comprehensively revised the EU's strategy for reducing CO2 emissions from new cars. The voluntary agreement with the car industry did not deliver and we have decided to propose legislation to reach the long-standing goal of cutting average emissions to 120 grammes per kilometre by 2012. This will be achieved by improvements in vehicle engine technology, down to 130 grammes per kilometre, couple with complementaty measures that will deliver the remaining 10 grammes.

European cars should be the cleanest in the world. The Commission's proposal ensures that we fully attain our environmental objectives and that the car sector contributes in a serious way to the fight against climate change. On this basis, the Commission will come forward with legislation by the end of this year or at the latest by mid-2008.

All of these initiatives have now been sent to the Parliament and I hope we can count on your support. In this context, we look forward to working closely with the new temporary committee on climate change.

One of our most important tasks this year is to finalise national allocation plans for the second trading period of the emissions trading scheme that starts next January 1. This is crucial for the scheme's credibility and for the further development of the global carbon market, which we see as an essential instrument for achieving deep cuts in worldwide emissions at lowest cost.

Later this year we will be proposing revisions to improve and strengthen the scheme, in anticipation that it will play a central role in a post-2012 global climate agreement. This revision will broaden emission trading to new sectors and gases, streamline the allocation process and prepare the ground for linking the EU ETS with other trading schemes around the world.

In assessing the national allocation plans, the Commission is determined to prevent a repeat of the over-allocation of allowances that took place in the first trading period. I signalled well in advance that we would be tough but fair, and that is exactly the even-handed approach we have carried out.

The Commission's decision on the national plans has followed a consistent method applied equally to all Member States, leading to important reductions of allocations. These decisions are putting Member States on track to meet their Kyoto commitments and ensure sufficient scarcity on the market to drive investments in clean technologies. The Commission will continue to follow this approach towards all member states.

2008 will be a crucial year to take forward the Energy and Climate Package. The Annual Policy Strategy for 2008 therefore rightly confirms climate change as a core priority for the Commission. However, there are other environmental challenges that also beg our attention. The year 2008 will be the start-up year for the new European Chemicals Agency in Helsinki, implementing the new EU Chemicals legislation. Also in 2008, the environment policy agenda will focus on implementing a Sustainable Consumption and Production Action Plan, which will aim to mitigate the environmental effects of resource consumption. Implementation of EU waste legislation will be targeted – looking with stakeholders at better ways to achieve waste management objectives and we will continue the development of the Civil Protection mechanism so that its capacity to respond to increasing demand for its services – notably linked with an increased incidence of extreme weather events – can be met.

On the international stage, the Commission will negotiate agreements on sustainable management of forests – notably tropical forests – and to prevent illegally harvested timber and forest products from becoming available in the EU.

Mister Chairman,

Honourable members,

The fight against climate change is now rightly recognised as a strategic priority by the European Union and, increasingly, elsewhere. Within the space of a few short months, the Stern Review, Al Gore's film An Inconvenient Truth, the latest IPCC report and not least the warmest winter on record have triggered a public and political awakening.

The European Union has risen to the occasion by putting in place the world's most ambitious global strategy for combating climate change. Our task over the next few months is to convince our partners to follow our example. It will not be easy but I believe the prospects for success have never been better.

The European Parliament can play an important role in this effort, not least through your extensive relations with parliamentarians in third countries. I hope the Commission can count on your support to help achieve the result we all need. –

Thank you