The European Commission has began to consider the next step to developing a 2030 framework for EU climate change and energy policies by launching a Green Paper consultation of the content of the 2030 framework.
The Green Paper will question:
– The type, nature and level of climate and energy targets that should be set for 2030
– How coherence between different policy instruments can be attained
– How the energy system can best contribute to EU competitiveness
– How member states different capacities to act can be taken into account
Europe’s dependence on foreign fossil fuels is growing every year, meaning damage to the environment and more expensive and unaffordable energy bills for Europeans. It is also not great for the economy or competiveness, which is why Europe wants a low carbon society for 2050. There have been targets set for 2020, but for most investors 2020 is around the corner. It is now time to define the targets for 2030 and the more ambitious these targets the better for the climate and energy costs.
Energy efficiency campaigners were disappointed that the EU’s Green Paper on 2030 climate targets almost completely failed to address the role that heat savings could play in reducing carbon emissions. Heat is responsible for around 45% of the continent’s final energy consumption; with huge losses arising from inefficiency, but The Green Paper mentions heat loss very little.
There is huge potential for turning waste heat into useful heat that could be used to produce electricity or to feed district heating networks. But a bias had led the Commission to view its 2050 target in terms of electricity and power markets rather than heating and cooling and as a result it had missed a trick in pinpointing future energy savings.
On the basis of the views expressed by Member States, EU institutions and stakeholders, the commission intends to table the EU’s 2030 framework for climate and energy policies by the end of this year.
