EU member states may be allowed to count controversial carbon credits from developing countries towards their climate targets, the European climate commissioner has said as states meet for a crucial decision on the issue.<\/p>\n
The EU will discuss on Wednesday its target for slashing carbon dioxide by 2040, with an expected cut of 90% compared with 1990 levels<\/a>, in line with the bloc\u2019s overarching target of reaching net zero by mid-century.<\/p>\n If agreed by member states, and passed by the EU parliament, that goal is then supposed to be translated into an international target \u2013 known as a nationally determined contribution<\/a> (NDC) \u2013 pegged to 2035, under the Paris agreement<\/a>.<\/p>\n But green groups are furious over proposals that would allow part of the target to be made up from buying carbon offsets<\/a> from overseas. They argue that the EU should meet its targets domestically. More than 130 groups wrote to express \u201cextreme concern\u201d over the proposals<\/a> last month.<\/p>\n Gareth Redmond-King, the international lead at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit thinktank, said: \u201cThere is no need for them to use credits. If such a major emitter is not going as far as they demonstrably could with emissions cuts, then the overall global ambition is lower than it could be. This would risk undermining the EU\u2019s reputation for climate leadership at a time when that leadership is most needed.\u201d<\/p>\n Wopke Hoekstra, the EU climate commissioner, told the Guardian that developing countries were keen to gain EU financing through carbon credits, for projects such as tree planting or forest restoration, and that it was possible to ensure that such offsets resulted in genuine emissions reductions. He said the possibility of allowing this was \u201cpotentially very attractive\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe planet doesn\u2019t care about where we take emissions out of the air,\u201d he said. \u201cYou need to take action everywhere, but it certainly also helps to do that both here and elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n He said developing countries in Africa and Latin America were interested in carbon credit projects. \u201cThere is huge appetite from our friends in the global south,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But such projects would have to be in addition to actions developing countries were already taking to meet their own emissions targets, rather than replacing them. \u201cIf it is additional, I think it is a great idea,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd what we will not have a shortage of is ambition to do stuff at the same time in Europe. There\u2019s no one who doubts the very significant level of ambition [for emissions cuts within the EU].\u201d<\/p>\n Hoekstra acknowledged there had been problems in the past with carbon credits that were found to be worthless<\/a>. \u201cIt all stands or falls with the integrity of such a system, where certification, verification [of carbon credits], is absolutely essential,\u201d he said. \u201cBut humanity has solved more difficult problems.\u201d<\/p>\n Wednesday\u2019s talks on a 2040 emissions target could also be derailed by a small number of member states, led by France, mooting \u201cdecoupling\u201d the domestic target from the NDC<\/a>. They argue that the NDC, with its 2035 emissions target, could be delivered in September without the 2040 figure being agreed, implying that a less ambitious 2040 goal could be agreed at a later date.<\/p>\n Hoekstra was firm. \u201cWe will come up this Wednesday with our 2040 climate target, and from that we will derive an ambitious NDC,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I am confident that we will deliver that exact number by September, as we were asked for by the secretary general of the UN.\u201d<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n The planet’s most important stories. Get all the week’s environment news – the good, the bad and the essential<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n All countries are expected to lay out their NDC before Cop30, the crunch climate summit in Brazil this November<\/a>, but few have yet done so<\/a>. China\u2019s NDC will be crucial, especially as Donald Trump has taken the US out of the Paris agreement.<\/p>\n Hoekstra attacked China for planning to build new coal-fired power plants, which he said was \u201cagainst what was agreed at Cop28\u201d, when countries resolved to \u201ctransition away from fossil fuels\u201d<\/a>. He said: \u201cBuilding new ones is a very bad idea.\u201d<\/p>\n