Parliament wants tough EU Cop 26 stance

The European Parliament today called for tough stances from EU negotiators at the upcoming UN Cop 26 climate conference in Glasgow. Aside from strict international carbon trading integrity, members also highlighted international maritime and aviation emissions.

Parliament adopted a general resolution for EU negotiators heading to Cop 26 calling for all sectors to contribute to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions cuts, most notably transport, including the aviation and maritime sectors.

EU negotiators should insist on consistent nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to the Paris climate agreement, with countries encouraged to include emissions from international shipping and aviation in their NDCs and implement international, regional and national measures to cut sectoral emissions, including non-CO2 impacts from aviation.

And while supporting the EU's "legislative autonomy" when implementing its own directive on the region's emissions trading system (ETS), EU negotiators should do their "utmost" to strengthen the International Civil Aviation Organisation's (ICAO) carbon offsetting and reduction scheme for international aviation (Corsia) and support a long-term ICAO goal to reduce in-sector emissions. Parliament is concerned by the "slow progress" at the International Maritime Organisation and ICAO in tackling international shipping and aviation emissions.

Parliament notably seeks "immediate" action against increases in black carbon emissions from Arctic shipping. It condemns the many "loopholes" in the IMO ban on the use of heavy fuel oil in the Arctic that has rendered protection of the region ineffective. Parliament is urging the European Commission to ensure that all ships calling at EU ports and travelling in or near the Arctic switch to "cleaner distillates and install particulate filters" to reduce black carbon emissions by over 90pc.

On the general EU negotiating position for Cop 26, the final parliament resolution follows the text adopted by its environment committee last week. Major points include the EU advocating strict and robust international rules for Article 6 of the Paris deal, which will set rules governing international carbon trading. It wants rules that avoid double counting to ensure environmental integrity with "real, additional, measurable, permanent and independently verified emissions reductions". No units issued under the Kyoto protocol should count towards current and future NDCs. And there must be "immediate" termination of the Clean Development Mechanism, which would "undermine" the Paris agreement.

Parliament's environment committee vice-chair Bas Eickhout noted that current global pledges are not on track.

"We are concerned about developments in the US in translating their promises into legislation. We are very concerned about China's pledges to reach carbon neutrality by 2060 and peak emissions by 2030 are insufficient. We still expect stronger commitments from countries such as Australia, which has not come forward with climate neutrality until now," Eickhout said.

Eickhout also called for the EU to show a leading role in Glasgow by insisting on coal phase-outs and ending use of the internal combustion engine.

European environment commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius did not mention specific countries such as Australia, China or the US but did call on G20 member countries to come forward "as soon as possible" with an enhanced NDC. Sinkevicius also wants Glasgow to settle outstanding issues under Article 6.

"Compromises that put environmental integrity at risk are not acceptable to us. Fostering global ambition, ensuring environmental integrity and avoiding double counting are at the core of the Paris agreement and of the EU position on market mechanisms," Sinkevicius said.

The EU is implementing its NDC to reduce GHG emissions by 55pc by 2030 compared with 1990 levels through a package of EU climate and energy legislation. Parliament members will here have much greater ability to shape final policy than in Glasgow as parliament will, with EU member states, amend and negotiate final legal EU texts on the basis of the commission's proposals. This will set the real pace of decarbonisation in the EU towards 2030 and the increasing contribution of sectors such as aviation and international shipping.

By Dafydd ab Iago