EU Environment Council fails to reach consensus

The roadmap aim is to establish a sustainable and cost-effective trajectory to 2050, on the basis of milestones for domestic greenhouse gas emissions reductions of 40% by 2030, 60% by 2040 and 80% by 2050 compared to 1990, as proposed in the Commission’s communication “A roadmap for moving to a competitive a low-carbon economy in 2050” presented in December 2011.

Except for Poland, 26 member states could agree on the Presidency’s final compromise text. Therefore, it was no possible to reach the necessary consensus on the text. Following this decision, Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard, underlined that Poland’s no to the European Commission low-carbon Roadmap is unfortunate, but it will not stop Europe from moving on with its transition to a low-carbon economy. She also stressed that milestones are not targets but that the EU should give a political sign that it is willing to move forward on climate issues at national and international level.

The Council also adopted the conclusions with a view to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio + 20), to be held from 20 to 22 June 2012, in Rio de Janeiro. The conclusions aim at complementing the general guidelines of the EU position at the UN Conference to take into account developments that have taken place since the last Council conclusions on this subject, adopted in October 2011. The EU and its Member States expect the UN Conference to produce a focused, ambitious and action-oriented document, including concrete and timely follow-up actions, which will also show a renewed political commitment to sustainable development.