EU ministers agree to cut CO2 emissions by 20%

EU ENVIRONMENT ministers have agreed unanimously to cut CO2 emissions by an average of 20% across the Union by 2020 in a follow-up to the Kyoto agreement on global warming.

But the reduction for Ireland should be much less given its rapid development, Environment Minister Dick Roche said.

Currently, Ireland has one of the highest emissions levels in the EU heading towards 28% above the 1990 rate, while the target for 2012 is 13% above.

M Roche said he hoped that when the EU member states discuss how the new overall target of 20% is to be achieved, Ireland’s position would be recognised.

The 20% is an average figure and member states will negotiate what the figure will be for each country. Known as burden sharing, Minister Roche believes that on a pro-rata basis Ireland’s new target would be to reduce CO2 levels to what they were in 1990 by 2020. This would be achieved through a mixture of buying carbon credits and reducing emissions from transport, agriculture, electricity generation and industry.

He defended Ireland’s right to higher emissions, in global terms, the country emits 0.17% of the world’s total emissions.

“We have to make sure we do not do something ruinous for the country,” he added.

Achieving the zero increase would mean cutting the present level of emissions by 22%.

This compares to some Eastern European member states, whose emissions are well below the 1990s level following the closure of many of their big polluting industry.

The ministers agreed to cut EU emissions even further — by 30% below 1990 levels — if there is an international agreement involving the world’s developed and developing economies. Currently developing countries and the USA are not part of the Kyoto plan.

But the Ministers at their meeting in Brussels decided not to discuss the issue of burden sharing, especially in light of objections from Poland and some other countries.

The meeting agreed that emissions from aircraft should be included in the emissions trading scheme. But Mr Roche said domestic airlines and international flights should come into the scheme in 2011 rather than bringing in domestic flights a year ahead of international.

However added that Ireland should get special recognition in this regard too, because of its geographic position on the edge of Europe.