European Commission unveils roadmap to combat climate change

The European Commission on Wednesday unveiled the ambitious European Green Deal, which outlined the European Union’s (EU) roadmap to combat climate change.

Tackling climate and environmental-related challenges is “this generation’s defining task,” the EU’s executive arm said in introductions, “The atmosphere is warming and the climate is changing with each passing year. One million of the eight million species on the planet are at risk of being lost. Forests and oceans are being polluted and destroyed. The European Green Deal is a response to these challenges.”

The deal aims at “no net emissions of greenhouse gases in 2050 and where economic growth is decoupled from resource use.”

The European Commission will propose the first European climate law by March 2020, which will enshrine the 2050 climate neutrality objective in legislation.

It is a fundamental change that will touch numerous sectors, particularly transport, energy, agriculture, buildings, and industries such as steel and cement.

Further decarbonizing the energy system is critical to reach the EU’s climate objectives. The production and use of energy across economic sectors account for more than 75 percent of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions.