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Press and Information - speeches
SPEECH/09/122
Stavros DIMAS 
Member of the European Commission, responsible for environment
US and EU leadership for Copenhagen
Brookings Institution and Heinrich Böll Foundation seminar,
Washington D.C. 16 March 2009
Chair,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I would like to thank the Brookings Institution and the Heinrich Böll Foundation for organising this seminar and for inviting me to take part.
Concluding an ambitious, global and comprehensive agreement in Copenhagen in December is vital for our climate - and vital for the international policy architecture if we are to avoid a damaging hiatus at the end of Kyoto's first commitment period in 2012.
Achieving this goal is going to take strong leadership. The European Union has been providing this for the past decade or more.
First, the 15 member states at the time of Kyoto are well on track to deliver on our commitment to an 8% reduction by 2012. We have achieved an absolute decoupling of emissions from economic growth.
Second, looking beyond Kyoto we have set ourselves the most ambitious targets anywhere in the world on moving towards the low-carbon economy and addressing energy security.
In December the EU institutions agreed on a set of legislative measures to implement these. By 2020 our emissions will be at least 20% lower than in 1990 and we will be getting 20% of our energy from renewable sources. Within the same timeframe we also aim to be 20% more energy efficient and to bring carbon capture and storage technology into the mainstream.
We reached an agreement which will achieve a high level of environmental ambition whilst addressing concerns of those heavily dependent on coal and those who may be at risk from carbon leakage. As you know from the many newspaper reports, we managed to complete the tough internal negotiations on this complex package of measures across 27 Member States in just under a year.
And third, the European Union has been developing its ideas for post-2012 international action in a succession of policy documents since 2005. At the end of January the European Commission set out a comprehensive vision for the Copenhagen agreement which we expect to be endorsed by EU leaders at their summit later this week.
So the European Union has done its homework and is leading the way forward, in terms of both our domestic action and our proposals for global policy.
But the fact is that, for Copenhagen to be a success, leadership is needed from all developed countries, and most of all from the United States as the world's biggest economy. That means leadership in reducing emissions, and leadership also in scaling up financial assistance to help developing countries cope with climate change.
Europe and the United States must start working together. I am convinced that climate change and energy security will become one of the most important chapters in our transatlantic relations over the coming months. Without joint leadership, we will never get the developing world on board, as we must if we are to stand any real chance of bringing climate change under control.
I therefore warmly welcome President Obama's determination to re-engage the United States fully in combating climate change and by his ambition to take international leadership. I am also very encouraged by the signals from Congress to start discussing the details of new climate bills as a matter of urgency, notably on a federal cap and trade system, and to bring these to a vote in time for Copenhagen .
Even if time is short, it is crucial to make swift progress on your domestic legislation by Copenhagen in order to create the necessary climate of trust. The outside world is looking to the US to lead by example. Credible leadership is only won through concrete action.
I am also very grateful that the new administration wants to provide new political momentum to the forum of major economies and to discuss content, not only as an input to the UNFCCC process, but also beyond. This will be crucial to build confidence within and between key players in the developed and developing world at this time.
The European Union and the Obama administration both agree that the fight against climate change must not be delayed by the economic crisis. Indeed, we both can, and we both are, tackling the economic crisis and the climate crisis simultaneously by implementing measures to green our economies. The stimulus packages we are taking to get our economies moving again are creating green jobs for our citizens by accelerating investment in building a lower-carbon energy system that is vital for beating climate change.
By the way, China, South Korea and others have also taken important measures in this direction which bring us closer to a global Green New Deal. It might be worthwhile for us exploring this further at the G20 Summit and in this year's G8 context.
Another area where transatlantic cooperation is of particular importance is the development of the international carbon market. The EU and US cap and trade systems will represent the largest part of a global carbon market. By working together to create a transatlantic carbon market, we can make sure that our two markets will become the twin engines in setting the standards and driving the international market. This will take us a step closer to a single international carbon price that sets a strong incentive for low carbon investment worldwide, removing all concerns about carbon leakage and distortions in competition.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The scientific evidence points clearly to the risk of irreversible and potentially catastrophic changes to our planet if global warming reaches an average of 2 degrees Celsius or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above the pre-industrial level.
That is why the European Union continues to insist that the objective of global action must be to prevent this tipping point from being reached. Ignoring the scientific warnings would be nothing short of denying our duty towards young people today and future generations.
To stay within this temperature limit, global emissions will need to be cut by at least half of 1990 levels by 2050. President Obama's target of reducing US emissions by 80% by 2050 is very much in line with the level of ambition that developed countries as a group will need to meet. We strongly welcome it.
But to get onto the trajectory that would allow us to achieve this cut of 50% or more by 2050, global emissions will need to peak before 2020. That is why firm action between now and 2020 is needed from developed and developing countries alike.
Our position on what needs to be done is probably well known but let me summarise it briefly.
Firstly , emissions from developed countries as a group will need to be cut to 30% below 1990 levels by 2020. The European Union is committed to cutting its own emissions by 30% provided our partners in the developed world make comparable reductions and more advanced developing countries take appropriate action. We have indicated a set of criteria that is central to the EU when assessing the comparability of developed countries' efforts. We are not saying everyone has to do 30%, but all need to do their fair share.
Without this leadership by developed countries we will not get the second crucial element, namely action by developing countries, particularly the emerging economies. I know the United States agrees with Europe on the importance of this.
Based on the latest scientific evidence we believe developing countries as a group should limit the growth of their emissions to between 15 and 30% below business as usual levels in 2020.
We propose that each developing country draws up a robust low-carbon development strategy that would both set out the mitigation measures they intend to take and identify their need for external support. Clearly the emerging economies must lead the way in terms of action and should come out clearly before Copenhagen .
Chair,
I am in danger of exceeding my allocated time so I will conclude.
Copenhagen is the world's opportunity to prevent climate change from reaching devastating levels. We must seize it.
The time has come for all developed countries to share leadership so that we can get developing countries on board. We cannot control climate change without them.
Europe feels the wind of change blowing through Washington and looks forward to working together with the United States and other major developed and developing economies to get the ambitious, global and comprehensive agreement that is needed in December. Across the Atlantic, Europe and America must cooperate in leadership to ensure we succeed.
Thank you.
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