European Green Deal

The European Green Deal is a set of policy initiatives by the European Commission with the overarching aim of making Europe climate neutral in 2050.[1][2] An impact assessed plan will also be presented to increase the EU's greenhouse gas emission reductions target for 2030 to at least 50% and towards 55% compared with 1990 levels. The plan is to review each existing law on its climate merits, and also introduce new legislation on the circular economy, building renovation, biodiversity, farming and innovation.[2]

Executive Vice President of the European Commission for the European Green Deal
Flag of the EU
Incumbent
Frans Timmermans
since 1 December 2019
Member ofthe European Commission
Reports toPresident of the European Commission
Term length5 years
Formation1 December 2019 (2019-12-01)
First holderFrans Timmermans
WebsiteA European Green Deal
Forests, like Meenikunno Nature Park in Estonia, will be restored

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, stated that the European Green Deal would be Europe's "man on the Moon moment", as the plan would make Europe the first climate-neutral continent.[2] Von der Leyen appointed Frans Timmermans as Executive Vice President of the European Commission for the European Green Deal. On 13 December 2019, the European Council decided to press ahead with the plan, with an opt-out for Poland.[3] On 15 January 2020 the European Parliament voted to support the deal as well, with requests for higher ambition.[4]

Aims

Compared to the proposed Green New Deal stimulus package of United States, the planned rate of decarbonisation of the economy is lower, with the EU aiming to become net-zero over three decades instead of within ten years.[5] The overarching aim of the European Green Deal is for the European Union to become the world's first “climate-neutral bloc” by 2050. It has goals extending to many different sectors, including construction, biodiversity, energy, transport and food.[6]

The plan includes potential carbon tariffs for countries that don't curtail their greenhouse gas pollution at the same rate.[5] It also includes:

  • a circular economy action plan,
  • a review and possible revision (where needed) of the all relevant climate-related policy instruments, including the Emissions Trading System,
  • a Farm to Fork strategy along with a focus shift from compliance to performance (which will reward farmers for managing and storing carbon in the soil, improved nutrient management, reducing emissions, ...),
  • a revision of the Energy Taxation Directive which is looking closely at fossil fuel subsidies and tax exemptions (aviation, shipping),
  • a sustainable and smart mobility strategy and an EU forest strategy. The latter will have as its key objectives effective afforestation, and forest preservation and restoration in Europe.

It also leans on Horizon Europe, to play a pivotal role in leveraging national public and private investments. Through partnerships with industry and member States, it will support research and innovation on transport technologies, including batteries, clean hydrogen, low-carbon steel making, circular bio-based sectors and the built environment.[7]

The EU plans to finance the policies set out in the Green Deal through an investment plan – InvestEU, which forecasts at least 1 trillion euros in investment. Furthermore, for the EU to reach its goals set out in the deal, it is estimated that approximately €260 billion a year from 2020 to 2030.[6]

Policy areas
Clean Energy

Climate neutrality by the year of 2050 is the main goal of the European Green Deal.[8] For the European union to reach their target of climate neutrality, one goal is to decarbonise their energy system by aiming to achieve “net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.”[9] Their relevant energy directive is intended to be looked over and adjusted if problem areas arise. Many other in place and present regulations will also be overlooked and reviewed.[9] In 2023, the Member states will update their climate and national energy plans to adhere to the EU's climate goal for 2030.[10] The key principles include: To “prioritise energy efficiency”,  to “develop a power sector based largely on renewable resources”,  to secure an affordable EU energy supply and to have a “fully integrated, interconnected digitalised EU energy market.”[10]

Sustainable Industry

Another target area to achieve the EU's climate goals is the introduction of the Circular Economy Industrial policy. In March 2020, the EU announced their Industrial Strategy with its aim to “empower citizens, revitalises regions and have the best technologies.”[11] Key points of this policy area include boosting the modern aspects of industries, influencing the exploration and creation of “climate neutral” circular economy friendly goods markets. This further entails the “decarbonisation and modernisation of energy-intensive industries such as steel and cement.”[12]

A ‘Sustainable products’ policy is also projected to be introduced which will focus on reducing the wastage of materials. This aims to ensure products will be reused and recycling processes will be reinforced.[9] The materials particularly focused on include “textiles, construction, electronics and plastics.”[13]

Building and Renovation

This policy area is targeting the process of building and renovation in regards to their currently unsustainable methods. Many non-renewable resources are used in the process as well. Thus, the plan focuses on promoting the use of energy efficient building methods such as climate proofing buildings, increasing digitalisation and enforcing rules surrounding the energy performance of buildings. Social housing renovation will also occur in order to reduce the price of energy bills for those less able to finance these costs.[14] They aim to triple the renovation rate of all buildings to reduce the pollution emitted during these processes.[9]

Organic farming methods to be used in response to 'From Farm to Fork' strategy
Farm to Fork

The ‘From Farm to Fork’ strategy pursues the issue of food sustainability as well as the support allocated to the producers, i.e. farmers and fishermen.[15] The methods of production and transfer of these resources are what the E.U. considers a climate-friendly approach, aiming to increase efficiency as well. The price and quality of the goods will aim to not be hindered during these newly adopted processes. Specific target areas include decreasing the use of chemical pesticides, increasing the availability of health food options and aiding consumers to understand the health ratings of products and sustainable packaging.[16]

In the official page of the program From Farm to Fork is cited Frans Timmermans the Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, saying that:

"The coronavirus crisis has shown how vulnerable we all are, and how important it is to restore the balance between human activity and nature. At the heart of the Green Deal the Biodiversity and Farm to Fork strategies point to a new and better balance of nature, food systems and biodiversity; to protect our people’s health and well-being, and at the same time to increase the EU’s competitiveness and resilience. These strategies are a crucial part of the great transition we are embarking upon."[17]

The program includes the next targets:

  • Making 25% of EU agriculture organic, by the year 2030.
  • Reduce by 50% the use of Pesticides by the year 2030.
  • Reduce the use of Fertilizers by 20% by the year 2030.
  • Reduce nutrient loss by at least 50%.
  • Reduce the use of antimicrobials in agriculture and antimicrobials in aquaculture by 50% by 2030.
  • Create sustainable food labeling.
  • Reduce food waste by 50% by 2030.
  • Dedicate to R&I related to the issue €10 billion.[17]
Eliminating pollution

The ‘Zero Pollution Action Plan’ that aims to be adopted by the commission in 2021 intends to achieve no pollution from “all sources”, cleaning the air, water and soil by 2050.[18] The Environment Quality standards are to be fully met, enforcing all industrial activities to be within toxic-free environments. Agricultural and urban industries water management policies will be overlooked to suit the “no harm” policy.[18] Harmful resources such as micro-plastics and chemicals, such as pharmaceuticals, that are threatening the environment aim to be substituted in order to reach this goal.[13] The ‘Farm to Fork’ strategy aids pollution reduction from excess nutrients and sustainable methods of production and transportation.[19]

Sustainable mobility

A reduction in emissions from transportation methods is another target area within the European Green Deal. Smart mobility intends to be implemented, fixing the emission standards for combustion-engine vehicles.[13] Smart traffic management systems and applications intend to be developed as a solution. Freight delivery methods aim to be altered, with preferred pathways being by land or water.[20] Public transport alterations aim to reduce public congestion as well as pollution. Installations of charging ports for electric vehicles intends to encourage the purchase of low-emission vehicles.[20] The ‘Single European Sky’ plan focuses on air traffic management in order to increase safety, flight efficiency and environmentally friendly conditions.[21]

Biodiversity
EU protection of Biodiversity

A strategy surrounding the protection of the European Union's biodiversity will be put forth in 2021. Management of forests and maritime areas, environment protection and addressing the issue of losses of species and ecosystems are all aspects of this target area.[13]

Restoration of affected ecosystems is intended to occur through implementing organic farming methods, aiding pollination processes, restoring free flowing rivers, reducing pesticides that harm surrounding wildlife and reforestation.[22] The EU wants to protect 30% of land and 30% of sea, whilst creating stricter safeguards around new and old growth forests. Their aim is to restore ecosystems and their biological levels.[22]

In the official page of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 is cited Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, saing that:

"Making nature healthy again is key to our physical and mental wellbeing and is an ally in the fight against climate change and disease outbreaks. It is at the heart of our growth strategy, the European Green Deal, and is part of a European recovery that gives more back to the planet than it takes away."[23]

The biodiversity strategy is an essential part of the climate change mitigation strategy of the European Union. From the 25% of the European budget that will go to fight climate change, a large portion of that will be dedicated to restoring biodiversity and nature based solutions.

The EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 include the next targets:

  • Protect 30% of the sea territory and 30% of the land territory especially primary forests and old-growth forests.
  • Plant 3 billion trees by the year 2030.
  • Restore at least 25,000 kilometers of rivers, so they will become free flowing.
  • Reduce the use of pesticides by 50% by the year 2030.
  • Increase organic farming.
  • Increase biodiverisity in agriculture.
  • Reverse the decline of pollinators.
  • Give €20 billion per year to the issue and make it part of the business practice.

According to the page, approximately half of the global GDP depend on nature. In Europe many parts of the economy that generate trillions € per year, depend on nature. Only the benefits of Natura 2000 in Europe are €200 - €300 billion per year.[23]

Motivation

The main aim of the European Green Deal is to become climate neutral by the year of 2050. The reasons pushing for the plan's creation are based upon the environmental issues such as climate change, a loss of biodiversity, ozone depletion, water pollution, urban stress, waste production and more. The following statistics highlight the climate related issues within the European Union:

  • In regards to climate change, carbon dioxide levels are predicted to double by the year of 2030 with Europe's temperature expected to increase by 2-3 °C in the summer sea.[24]
  • Europe is responsible for nearly one third of the world's gas emissions that deplete the ozone.[24]
  • More than 50% of all surface area where ecosystems are in Europe are presented with threats from management problems and stresses.[24]
  • On average, 700,000 hectares of woodland are burnt annually by fires “often caused by socioeconomic factors” within the European Union, leading to the degradation of forests.[24]
Clean energy statistics
Sustainable industry statistics
  • Studies showed that from the year of 1970 to 2017, the world's yearly extraction of resources tripled. The repercussions of this process led to a 90% loss in biodiversity.[25]
  • The European Union's current industry is responsible for 20% of their greenhouse gas emissions.[26]
  • The current resources that originate from recycling methods is 12% within the European Union's industry.[27]
Building and renovations statistics
  • The building and renovation methods used by the European Union use 40% of all energy consumed.[28]
Farm to fork statistics
  • Within the European Union, “20% of food production is wasted” whilst “36 million of the population are unable to have quality meal every second day.”[16]
Eliminating pollution statistics
  • From the 50,000 industrial locations in the EU, up to €189 billion is spent on health issues related to pollution from these installations.[18]
Sustainable mobility statistics
  • 25% of Greenhouse gas emissions result from transportation methods. Road transport takes 71.7% of this total, followed by 13.9% from Aviation, 13.4% from Water, with railways and other accumulating the remainder.[20]
  • The Single European Sky strategy is predicted to help reduce 10% of aviation emissions.[20]
Biodiversity
  • Within the EU, €40 trillion depends on nature and its resources.[29]
  • The population of wild species has declined by over 50% on average in the last two generations.[30]

Timeline
  • 11 December 2019

The European Green Deal was presented.

  • 14 January 2020

The European Green Deal Investment Plan as well as the Just Transition Mechanism were presented.

  • 4 March 2020

There was a proposal for a European climate law to ensure a climate neutral European Union by 2050.

A public consultation was held on the European Climate Pact (in regards to bringing together regions, local communities, civil society, business and schools).

  • 10 March 2020

The European Industrial Strategy was adopted (which is a plan for a future ready economy).

  • 11 March 2020

There was a proposal for a Circular Economy Action Plan that focused on sustainable resource use.

  • 20 May 2020

The ‘Farm to fork strategy’ was presented in order to increase the sustainability of food systems.

The EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 was presented which focuses on the protection of fragile natural resources.

[31]

History of opposition

Although all EU leaders signed off on the European green deal in December 2019, disagreements in regards to the goals and their timeline to achieve each factor arose. Poland has stated that climate neutrality by 2050 will not be a possibility for their country due to their reliance on coal as their main power source. Their climate minister, Michał Kurtyka, declared that commitments and funds need to be more fairly allocated.[32] The initiative to increase the goal of lowering carbon emissions split the EU, with the coal reliant countries such as Poland complaining it will effect “jobs and competitiveness.”[32] Up to 41,000 jobs could be lost within Poland, with the Czech republic, Bulgaria and Romania also having a possible loss of 10,000 jobs each.[33] Czech Prime Minister, “Andrej Babis” stated that their nation will not reach the 2050 goal “without nuclear” association.[34] Countries are also arguing over the Just Transition Fund (JTF) that aims to help countries who are reliant on coal to become more environmentally friendly.[35] These countries that changed their impacts prior to the Policy, such as Spain, believe that the JTF is unfair as it only benefits the countries that didn't "go green earlier."[32] The head of Brussels' office of the Open Europe think tank, Pieter Cleppe, further dismissed the plan with sarcastic comment, “What could possibly go wrong.”[34]

In addition, many groups such as “Greenpeace”, “Friends of the Earth Europe” and the “Institute for European Environmental Policy” have all analysed the policy and believe it isn't “ambitious enough.”[34] Greenpeace believes the plan is “too little too late”[36] whilst the IEEP stated that most prospects of meeting policy objectives “lacked clear or adequate” goals for the problem areas.[37]

Controversies

It has been found that American oil company ExxonMobil had a significant impact on the early negotiations of the European Green Deal. ExxonMobil attempted to change the deal in a way that puts less emphasis on the importance of reducing transport that emits carbon dioxide. This was only one of many opponents of the deal.[38]

The European Green Deal has faced criticism from some EU member states, as well as non-governmental organizations. Greenpeace has argued that the deal is not drastic enough and that it will fail to slow down climate change to an acceptable degree.[39] There has been criticism of the deal not doing enough, but also of the deal potentially being destructive to the European Union in its current state. Former Romanian president, Traian Băsescu, has warned that the deal could lead to some EU members to push towards an exit from the union. While some European states are on their way to eliminating the use of coal as a source of energy, many others still rely heavily on it.[40] This scenario demonstrates how the deal may appeal to some states more than others. The economic impact of the deal is likely to be unevenly spread among EU states. This was highlighted by Polish MEP, Ryszard Legutko, who asked, “is the Commission trying to seize power from the member states?”.[41] Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, three states that depend mostly on coal for energy, were the most opposed to the deal. Young climate activist Greta Thunberg commented on governments opposing the deal, saying "It seems to have turned into some kind of opportunity for countries to negotiate loopholes and to avoid raising their ambition".[42]

The EU has acknowledged these issues, however, and through the “Just Transition Mechanism”, expects to distribute the burden of transitioning to a greener economy more fairly. This policy means that countries that have more workers in coal and oil shale sectors, as well as those with higher greenhouse emissions, will receive more financial aid.[6] According to Frans Timmermans, this mechanism will also make investment more accessible for those most affected, as well as offering a support package, which will be worth “at least 100 billion euros”.[43]

Recovery program from the novel coronavirus
See also: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the environment § Investments and other economic measures

With the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic spreading rapidly within the European Union, the focus on the European Green Deal diminished. Many leaders including the deputy minister, Kowalski, from Poland, a Romanian politician, and the Czech prime minister, Babiš, suggested either a yearly pause or a complete discontinuation of the deal. Many believe the current main focus of the European Union's current policymaking process should be the immediate, shorter-term crisis rather than climate change.[44]

The financial market being under immense stress along with a reduction in economic activity is another factor threatening to derail the European Green Deal. Public and private funds for the policy as well as the EU's GDP being affected by COVID-19 both hinder the budgeting for the policy to take action.[44]

However, as recovery processes have begun within the European Union, a large majority of ministers are supporting the push for the deal to begin alongside this improvement in health. Representatives from 17 governments have signed a letter pushing for the deal to continue as a “response to the economic crisis while transforming Europe into a sustainable and climate neutral economy.”[45]

In April 2020 the European Parliament called to include the European Green Deal in the recovery program from the pandemic.[46][47][48] Ten countries urged the European Union to adopt the “green recovery plan" as fears grew that the economic hit caused by the COVID-19 pandemic could weaken action on climate change.

In May 2020 the leaders of the European Commission argued that the ecological crisis helped create the pandemic which emphasised the need to advance the European Green Deal.[23][17]

In May 2020, the €750 billion European recovery package (called Next Generation EU)[49][50] and the €1 trillion budget were announced. The European Green deal is part of it. One of the principles is "Do no harm". The money will be spent only on projects that meet certain green criteria. 25% of all funding will go to Climate change mitigation. Fossil fuels and Nuclear power are excluded from the funding. The recovery package is also intended to restore some equilibrium between rich and poor countries in the European Union.[51]

See also

References
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