"Climate change and sustainable use of energy" - Speech by EU Commissioner Dimas

Sommaire: "Climate change and sustainable use of energy" - Speech by EU Commissioner Dimas (25 April 2007: Copenhague)

Speech by Stavros Dimas, Member of European Commission, responsible for environment, "Climate change and sustainable use of energy", ASEM Environment Minister's meeting, Copenhague

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today it is time to talk about the future. Climate change affects everyone on this planet. For some it is their very survival that is at stake. It is their home, their livelihood, the food that they eat. The international community must act fast if we are to keep control over climate change and avoid its' worse consequences.

This will require strong political will from world leaders. We, the European Union, are ready to take the lead in international efforts to combat climate change but, to be successful all emitters of greenhouse gases must contribute in a manner that is coherent with our common, but differentiated responsibilities and respective capacities. This is an essential subject for ASEM and why I thank Connie Hedegaard for giving us the opportunity to discuss how ASEM partners can work together to meet the global, regional and national challenges that climate change poses.

The next decade will be crucial. There is a real window of opportunity for action on climate change, but it is closing. Within 10-15 years, emissions of greenhouse gases will have to peak and then start falling. The longer we wait to take action, the higher the costs.

We need a common understanding on where we want to go - and by when. We are all committed to the UN Convention's objective to avoid dangerous human interference with the climate system. But what does this mean- in terms of numbers?

Europe's objective is to limit the rise in average global temperatures to two degrees above pre-industrial levels. The IPCC's recent reports have shown us that above this threshold the risks of catastrophic and irreversible damage across the world increase dramatically.

On the 10th of March, EU Heads of State and Government unanimously agreed on an ambitious EU climate change and energy strategy, based on the two degrees objective. This strategy, which is based on proposals from the European Commission, sets out concrete global and EU actions.

The main responsibility lies with developed countries. Having caused much of the current accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and with access to the technological and financial capacity to reduce their emissions, developed countries should, as a group, reduce their emissions by 30% below 1990 levels by 2020. This should be followed by cuts in the range of 60 to 80% compared to 1990 levels by 2050.

We expect all developed countries to take on their share of responsibility. This includes the United States and Australia that have not ratified the Kyoto Protocol.

The EU is willing to commit to such reductions in the context of an international agreement. But we are not waiting for an agreement to be in place. EU leaders have made an independent commitment to reduce the EU's greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20%, even in absence of a global agreement. This independent commitment underpins our strong resolve to reach an international agreement. It sends a clear signal to our partners around the globe that it is time to move from words to action.

Even if industrialised countries must take the lead, they cannot solve climate change alone. Stronger cooperation between developing and developed countries is needed. The European Commission has put forward a number of options for engaging developing countries in a global climate agreement. Our cooperation should enable us to jointly tackle both mitigation and adaptation.

The global carbon market will be a key tool. And it has got off to a good start. The Clean Development Mechanism is expected to generate more than 1 billion tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions reductions by 2012. The European Union has created an emissions trading system, the largest of its kind in the world. We should strengthen the Clean Development Mechanism. One option is to cover entire national sectors and generate credits if these sectors exceed pre-established targets. We should also improve access to finance for developing countries, including innovative financing mechanisms such as the Global Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Fund, recently proposed by the European Commission.

We should strengthen our research and technology cooperation with developing countries. The transfer of new technologies works better if developing countries have been engaged in their development right from the start. An example of such cooperation is the EU-China Partnership on Climate Change, under which we are jointly developing a demonstration plan on near zero emissions coal technology. Importantly, we should also strengthen our cooperation to help the least developed among us face the increasing impacts of climate change.

With a view to promoting more concrete ASEM cooperation and dialogue on environment and climate change, the Commission has proposed the establishment of a new dialogue facility under the ASEM umbrella for the period 2007-2013. If agreed by EU Member States, we will be in a position to use the facility to bring together experts from interested ASEM partner countries to discuss the most pertinent challenges and identify opportunities for concrete cooperation on environment and climate change policy. We hope to launch the first event under this facility, to which you will all naturally be invited, early next year.

It is crucial that in our strengthened cooperation we remain committed to a fundamental principle: sustainable economic development. Both the IPCC and the Stern Review tell us that effective action to tackle climate change is fully possible to reconcile with rising economic growth and prosperity. Progressive economies and businesses are discovering and using these opportunities to their benefit. Our Danish host and the companies that some of you will be visiting tomorrow are good examples of this.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Negotiations on a global and comprehensive post-2012 agreement must be launched at the end of the year at the UN ministerial conference on climate change, which the Indonesian government will host in Bali. These negotiations should follow up on the Convention Dialogue that will end in September. These negotiations should complement our ongoing negotiations on further commitments for developed countries under the Kyoto Protocol. They should also incorporate the full review of the Kyoto Protocol itself. To avoid ending up with a gap when the first commitment periods and framework ends in 2012, we must reach a global international agreement on further action soon ─ preferably by 2009.

As ASEM partners we have a special responsibility. We are all Parties to the UN Framework Convention on climate change and the principles set out in these instruments. All of us are well aware of the threats posed by climate change to our future. But we also have a real opportunity before us. As far as the future international agreement is concerned, Asia is currently in an excellent position to seize those opportunities.

Pakistan, which will officially join the ASEM partnership in 2008, is currently chairing the group of developing countries, the G-77. Our Indonesian colleagues have the honour of presiding over the UN climate conference in Bali in December. As ASEM partners we can work together to set ambitious objectives for the Bali meeting and ensure its success by taking a first important step towards the global agreement needed to make the crucial difference our climate, our planet.

Thank you.

Ref: SP07-145EN
Source UE: Commission Européenne
UN forum:
Date: 25/4/2007

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