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The European Union has
formalised its support for the Copenhagen Accord on climate
change and presented its commitments for emission reduction
targets.
In a joint letter with
the Spanish Presidency of the Council, the European Commission
has formally notified the EU's willingness to be associated
with the Accord and submitted for information the EU's established
greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets for 2020.
These consist of a unilateral
commitment to reduce the EU's overall emissions by 20% of
1990 levels and a conditional offer to increase this cut to
30%, provided that other major emitters agree to take on their
fair share of a global reduction effort. Under the Accord,
notifications were to be submitted by 31 January 2010.
Copenhagen Accord
The Copenhagen Accord was the main outcome of the UN climate
change conference held in Copenhagen from 7 to 19 December
2009. The accord was negotiated on the final day of the conference
by the leaders of some 28 developed and developing countries
and the European Commission. These countries account for over
80% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
The Conference then took
note of the Copenhagen accord. The secretariat of the UN climate
change convention invited Parties to declare - by 31 January
- whether they wished to be associated with the Copenhagen
Accord. The Accord sets the same date for developed countries
to submit their emission reduction targets and for developing
countries to submit their emissions mitigation actions.
EU notification
In the letter from the Commission and the Presidency of
the Council, the EU reconfirms its commitment to a negotiating
process to achieve the strategic objective of limiting the
increase in global average temperature to below 2°C above
the pre-industrial level. The Copenhagen Accord recognises
the scientific view that global warming should be kept below
2°C in order to prevent dangerous climate change, but it does
not include any global emission reduction targets for respecting
this limit.
The letter restates the EU's position
that keeping below 2°C requires global emissions to peak by
2020 at the latest, to be reduced to at least 50% below 1990
levels by 2050 and to continue to decline thereafter. To this
end - and in line with the findings of the UN Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - developed countries, as a
group, should reduce their emissions by 25-40% below 1990
levels by 2020 and developing countries should achieve a substantial
deviation below the currently predicted emissions growth rate
- in the order of 15-30% by 2020, the letter continues.
It underlines the full commitment
of the EU and the Member States to continue negotiations with
a view to agreeing as soon as possible, within the UN framework,
a legally binding international agreement for the period starting
1 January 2013, when the Kyoto Protocol's first commitment
period expires.
EU emission targets
The letter states that the EU is committed to an independent
economy-wide emissions reduction target of 20% by 2020 - compared
with 1990 levels - and that this cut could be increased to
30% under the conditions agreed by the European Council.
These conditions are that,
as part of a global and comprehensive agreement for the period
beyond 2012, other developed countries commit themselves to
comparable emission reductions and developing countries contribute
adequately according to their responsibilities and respective
capabilities.
Next steps
Heads of State and Government will assess the post-Copenhagen
situation at the Informal European Council on 11 February.
The next round of UN negotiations
will take place for two weeks in May-June.
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