Odds Of EU Committment To 30% Emissions Cut Fading As Deadline Approaches - AFP

[hatrack]

With just a fortnight to go until signatories to the Copenhagen Accord are required to submit new emission targets, it appears ever more unlikely that the EU will increase its target for 2020 and pledge to cut emissions by 30 per cent. A number of EU states, including the UK, France, Germany, Belgium and Spain, had been pushing for the bloc to act unilaterally and increase its emission reduction target for 2020 from 20 to 30 per cent below 1990 levels.

Officials had hoped that moving to the more ambitious target would help to restore momentum to international negotiations following the Copenhagen summit and increase pressure on other nations to adopt more ambitious targets.

However, environment ministers meeting in Seville over the weekend admitted that the EU remains divided on the proposal and it is now highly unlikely that the bloc will announce a more ambitious target ahead of the 31 January deadline for countries to submit emission targets and action plans under the Copenhagen Accord.

Poland and other eastern European states are known to be fiercely opposed to increasing the target, while Italian environment minister Stefania Prestigiacomo argued that it was "frankly surreal" to be discussing moving to the 30 per cent target when the Copenhagen summit had failed to secure similar commitments from other large polluters.

EDIT

http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2256282/chances-eu-adopting-per-cent