It’s Christmas in July (for Commissioners)! Von der Leyen hands out policy gifts ahead of key vote
Ursula von der Leyen presents herself as a beacon of stability to secure another five years at the head of the EU’s executive.
2040 climate target
Today’s Environmental Council – closing off the Green Deal and looking to 2040
European environment ministers will gather in Luxembourg this morning (17 June) for the final Environment Council meeting of Belgium’s EU Council Presidency, aiming to progress several outstanding Green Deal files.
Ursula von der Leyen’s secret climate crusade
Has the European Commission president given up on her green agenda going into a possible second term — or is she just biding her time?
Putting the ‘net’ in net zero: scaling up carbon removal technologies in Europe [Promoted content]
How will Europe remove millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to keep on track for its climate commitments – that’s a key question facing the next European Commission and Parliament. Kasia Wilk from Drax explains how the Green Claims …
EU countries express conditional support for 2040 climate target
The EU’s debate on a 90% climate target for 2040 made some progress on Monday (25 March), with 10 countries in favour, three against, and 13 asking for additional concessions at a meeting of environment ministers in Brussels.
Air pollution deaths, acidic waters and DACC dependence – the cost of farmer compromises
7000 annual air pollution deaths, 10,000 km2 of acidified water and 150,000 km2 of algae blooms. These are just some of the extra impacts by 2040, if the Commission does not manage to curb agriculture’s environmental impact.
Next EU legislative term must reconcile climate and industry, says French think tank
Équilibre des énergies (EdEn), a French think tank, issued its recommendations for the next EU term of office (2024-2029). In exclusivity for Euractiv France, the group stresses the need for a European industrial strategy that is properly geared toward…
EU aims to deploy Europe’s first small nuclear reactor ‘by 2030’
Small modular reactors (SMRs) will be partly relied upon to meet the EU’s 2040 climate objectives, with an industrial alliance to be launched shortly and the first reactors deployed “by 2030”, the European Commission announced on Tuesday (6 February).
EU Commission backtracks on agricultural emissions cuts
In its 2040 climate roadmap, the EU executive dropped a reference to the possibility for agriculture to reduce non-CO2 emissions by at least 30% in 25 years, amid farmers’ protests over the bloc’s green policies.
The EU’s 2040 climate targets and strategy must prioritise farmers
The EU is already struggling to meet its 2030 climate and energy targets, so it needs to put farmers as well as the social and environmental benefits first in order to project itself forward to 2040, write Zsolt Lengyel and Erica Johnson.
EU kicks off debate on 2040 climate goal on way to net-zero emissions
The European Commission presented its recommendations for the EU’s 2040 climate target on Tuesday (6 February), arguing for a 90% cut in emissions compared to 1990, and paving the way for carbon capture technology to abate remaining emissions from indu…
Ursula von der Leyen scraps pesticide reduction bill, in gift to farmers
The European Parliament already rejected the contentious text, which the Commission President described as a “worthy aim.”
EU to unveil 2040 climate targets in political tightrope act
The EU on Tuesday unveils its climate targets for 2040 and a roadmap for the next stage of its energy transition, four months before European elections and with the bloc reeling from a farmer revolt against green reforms.
[Agenda] EU’s 2040 climate target and farmers in focus This WEEK
This week, the EU commission will present a proposal to cut net emissions by 90 percent by 2040, while MEPs discuss the demands of farmers’ protests across Europe. Romanian president Klaus Iohannis will also address the EU parliament in Strasbourg.
LEAK: Brussels eyes 90% climate goal for 2040, 11 EU countries call for ambition
The European Commission is due to table a 90% climate target for 2040, according to a leaked draft, while a coalition of 11 EU countries including France and Germany have issued a letter calling for ambitious targets.
EU countries hold first exchange on 2040 climate target
Several EU countries have expressed support for plans to target a 90% emissions cut relative to 1990 levels by 2040. While Hungary is sceptical, France and Germany have yet to take a stance.
More climate and ‘an end date’ for coal: Poland’s new green tide arrives in Brussels
The new Polish government has announced its ambition to become a green player in Europe, backing a 90% greenhouse gas reduction target for 2040 and looking to pull forward the country’s coal exit.
France, Czechia defy EU sceptics on nuclear power
France and Czechia reiterated calls on Tuesday (9 January) for the European Commission to put nuclear power on an equal footing with renewable energies in all EU policies, putting traditional nuclear sceptic countries on the defensive.
2024 lookahead: Climate target for 2040 will be EU Commission’s ‘legacy’, activists say
The European Commission is expected to table its proposed climate target for 2040 on 6 February, in what many see as the current administration’s legacy for the new team that will be appointed to lead the Brussels-based executive after the June EU elec…
Why the EU’s 2050 climate neutrality target is 10 years too late
Global science says that rich nations should achieve climate neutrality no later than 2040, write Leon de Graaf, Dominika Floriánová, Antoine Grall and Ella Oksala.