Belgium calls for “realistic and economically feasible” climate policy

After months of delay, the Commission this week came up with a proposal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union by 90 percent by 2040 compared to 1990. This is an interim target on the road to climate neutrality by 2050. European Commissioner for Climate Wopke Hoekstra promises member states a more flexible framework, including the option to meet a limited part of the effort through the purchase of carbon credits in third countries.

In Belgium, federal climate minister Jean-Luc Crucke welcomed the “ambitious” proposal. According to him, this is necessary to respect the international climate agreement of Paris. But that ambition “must be accompanied by a fair, realistic, and economically feasible transition,” says Crucke. “We are currently analyzing the Commission’s proposal in detail with the federated entities, in order to determine a coherent, ambitious, and constructive Belgian position in the coming weeks.”

In the coming weeks, Belgium must also submit a plan to the Commission that outlines how the country can achieve its climate target for 2030. To do this, emissions from buildings and in sectors such as transport and agriculture must be reduced by 47 percent. Due to ongoing disagreements between the regions over the distribution of the effort, our country is hopelessly late with the plan.