Provisional agreement on European Climate Law

The European Commission has announced the provisional agreement on the European Climate Law on April 21st.

The Climate Law aims at introducing the legal obligation of all member states to implement the goals set out in the European Green Deal, i.e. Europe’s economy and society to become climate-neutral by 2050. This means for EU countries to cut emissions, invest in green technologies and protect the natural environment. In addition to the 2050 climate neutrality target, the European framework for climate action introduces the following elements:

• an ambitious 2030 climate target of at least 55% reduction of net greenhouse gas emissions as compared to 1990;
• recognition of the need to enhance the EU's carbon sink through a more ambitious LULUCF (Land-Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry) regulation;
• the 2040 climate target, that will be set based on the 2030-2050 roadmap to be published by the Commission;
• the commitment to negative emissions after 2050;
• the establishment of European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change, that will provide independent scientific advice;
• stronger provisions on adaptation to climate change;
• strong coherence across Union policies with the climate neutrality objective;
• the commitment to prepare sector-specific roadmaps charting the path to climate neutrality in different areas of the economy.

The European Climate Law is a key milestone for the von der Leyen Commission, and was one of the commitments announced in the President's Political Guidelines speech in July 2019. It will guide the policies of all Member states for the next 30 years, and will serve as a base for all the future national environmental laws.