Verdades ou puros enganos

Como apoiante da Greenpeace, foi com agrado que, ao receber o email a pedir para mostrarmos ao nosso Parlamento que achávamos que as políticas ambientais deviam ser mudadas, de maneira a que as emissões de CO2 sejam reduzidas em, pelo menos, 30% até 2020, aderi, e juntei o meu nome a um email pré-escrito pela organização, a ser enviado a vários membros do Parlamento, incluíndo Nicholas Sarkozy, e ao nosso Ministro do Ambiente, Francisco Nunes Correia.
Nesse email eram enviadas algumas sugestões que achamos ser necessárias pôr em prática para manter o aquecimento global abaixo dos 2ºC, evitando assim uma maior catástrofe ambiental!

Não estava com esperança de receber uma resposta, de qualquer um dos dos representantes que receberam a carta electrónica, mas a verdade é que recebi.

Satu Hassim, Finlandesa, Membro do Grupo dos Verdes e da Aliança Livre Europeia, teve a bondade e preocupação de responder a uma cidadã europeia preocupada. Gostei da atitude, mesmo que tenha sido um daqueles emails que são escritos e enviados para milhares, apenas mudando o nome! Foi um gesto bonito.
Aqui está a sua resposta:

Dear Jane,

thank you for your email.

The greens have argued from very beginning that EU climate legislation for period of 2013-2020 should be based on at least a 30% reduction. Such a target would send a strong signal to the international climate negotiations, showing leadership on the part of the EU with regards to the achievement of an international deal.

As a Rapporteur of the Effort Sharing Decision (for emissions outside the ETS-sectors for the years 2013-2020) I proposed in my draft report, along with several other strengthenings, to include all of these three elements you are asking about:


1) to take the -30% by 2020 compared to 1990 levels as a basis for legislation and this to be done domestically, 2) to strengthen compliance measures in case a Member State does not deliver the required emissions reductions by fines and other measures, 3) to include a new external emissions reduction target on top of Member States own internal emissions reduction targets to finance mitigation in developing countries.

The EP environment committee voted on the 7th of October and included most of my proposals into European Parliament position in an almost unanimous vote (66:1:0).

- Despite our efforts there was no majority to change the Commission basis in the Parliament to have -30% as a starting point, but the reference to the higher target was included in the article and Member States are required to start with projections and planning already for the higher target, and must also report on this planning. The automaticity (proposed by the Commission) of the step up of EU internal effort to an internationally agreed target was maintained in EP position.

- CDM/JI external quota that is used to offset EU emissions in developing counties is restricted to 8% of the emissions in 2005, which is a third compared to the Commission proposal and means approx 20% of total emissions reduction obligation 2005-2020 instead of 65,7%, which the Commission proposal had meant.

- Compliance measures were reinforced in case a Member State does not deliver the required emission reductions through a direct penalty equal to the one applying to installations in the ETS (100€), in addition the Member States loose corresponding auction rights. Also any underachievement has to be compensated by factor 1,3 in the following year.

- For external offsetting the committee improved the quality of the credits used: only credits from renewables and efficiency allowed if they fulfil other sustainability, additionality, environmental and social criteria.

- Shipping emissions were included (also in the reduction targets) unless they are covered by other community measures



- Committee also endorsed the binding energy efficiency targets for member States.

- EP position includes an external adaptation commitment starting at 5 billion €/year in 2013 going up to 10 billion € in 2020 as well as an additional external emission reduction commitment.

The European Parliament will now enter into negotiations on the climate package with the Council of ministers and we are hoping to have a result in the end of November to have good basis for international climate negotiations in Poznan in mid December. As the Rapporteur and the main negotiator of the Parliament on Effort Sharing I will do my best to ensure that the elements mentioned above will be in the final legal text also.

What comes to other parts of the EU climate legislation for 2013-2020, e.g. reform of the emission trading system (ETS) I have worked along the same lines.

Thank you again for your email. I believe it is of utmost importance that EU citizens remain alert during this most important month.

With my best wishes,

Satu Hassi
European Parliament Rapporteur of the Effort Sharing Decision

Obrigada, senhora Hassim!