EU climate plans threatened as nations look to help industry
European Union nations began picking apart yesterday a vast package to combat climate change as their industries suffer under the weight of the global financial crisis.
Italy, whose Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi threatened last week to veto the plans, led calls for significant changes to be made and demanded a review mechanism, saying it was not the only nation ready to take a stand.
"The package as it stands right now is not suitable. It is untenable. Significant changes are needed," Italian Environment Minister Stefania Prestigiacomo told reporters at EU environment talks in Luxembourg.
"We are not the only ones to take this position," she said.
"We demand a review clause. We hope now that real negotiations will be opened. We've come with good intentions. We are going to ask for many modifications and we hope they will be taken into account," she said.
On Saturday, Italian news agency ANSA said Rome could approve the plan if it includes a clause allowing for its revision following a cost-efficiency report to be produced in 2009.
Last year, the EU vowed to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020, compared to 1990 levels, in an effort to halt global warming. It also pledged to have renewable energies make up 20 percent of all energy sources.
In order to achieve these overall targets, heavy industry -- which produces 40 percent of the EU's greenhouse gases -- would have to cut its CO2 emissions by 21 percent from 2005 levels.
Other goals are fixed for transport, agriculture and other sectors.
On Friday, the head of the UN climate change body warned that the EU would send a dangerous signal if it failed to meet the December deadline, just as world governments are to meet in Poland to discuss global warming.
EU Environment Commission Stavros Dimas also opposed any backsliding.
"This is a red line," he said. Any tweaking of the proposals must be made "without touching the environmental objective."
But Italy and Poland threatened at a summit last week to veto the project -- which was due to be sealed in December -- as the financial crisis bites and with relatively poor ex-communist countries dependent on coal for energy.
The three Baltic states, along with Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia also raised objections.
Poland vowed to use its veto to resist any attempt to railroad targets through.
In the end, Rome and Warsaw persuaded their EU partners to only adopt the package at the next EU summit in mid-December by a unanimous -- rather than majority -- vote; a clear threat to the bloc's ambitious plans.
Italy suspects the plan would cost its economy around 25 billion euros (33 billion dollars) each year, although the European Commission puts the figure at between nine and 12 billion euros.
Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who triumphantly unveiled the targets last year when her country held the EU's rotating presidency, conceded last week that the bloc has "lots of work" ahead if it is to reach agreement.
"The financial crisis looks like an excuse to me," said German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel, whose country nevertheless is looking for the targets to be eased in, so as not to harm the automobile industry.
"If we don't make it (to agreement by December), the international negotiations on climate change are going to be seriously compromised," he told reporters Monday.
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