The Commission proposes a European climate law: climate neutrality in 2050 as an obligation

On 4 March 2020 the European Commission presented a proposal for a European climate law (COM(2020) 80) — a regulation that is to turn the goal of climate neutrality by 2050 into a legal obligation for the whole Union. It is the first legal act resulting directly from the European Green Deal and a point of reference for all later energy and environmental legislation.

What the proposal contains

The proposed regulation is a framework one. It does not impose obligations on individual plants, but sets the direction and the procedures by which the remaining legislation is created. The most important elements:

• the 2050 goal — the Union is to achieve climate neutrality, and the institutions and Member States are to take the necessary action at EU and national level;
• the trajectory — the Commission is to indicate the path to 2050 and, by September 2020, present a proposal for a new 2030 target in the range of 50–55% after an impact assessment;
• assessment of progress — every five years, in connection with the global stocktake under the Paris Agreement, the Commission is to assess the consistency of actions with the goal, including national actions;
• recommendations — if the actions of a Member State prove inconsistent with the goal, the Commission will be able to issue recommendations, and the state will have to take them into account or justify its refusal.

The Commission also launched a consultation on the European Climate Pact, which is to involve citizens and local communities.

Significance for biogas, biomethane and waste

The climate law does not contain detailed provisions for technologies, but it creates a framework within which subsequent acts will be tightened: the Renewable Energy Directive, the ETS, emission reduction targets in non-ETS sectors (including agriculture and waste) and rules for gases. A higher 2030 target would mean greater demand for renewable energy carriers and greater pressure to reduce methane emissions from agriculture, landfills and gas networks — and therefore also for the use of biogas from manure, slurry and biowaste.

The position of states and further steps

The proposal went to the European Parliament and the Council. The question of Poland's position remained open, as in December 2019 it had not joined the declaration on 2050. There were also voices in the debate that the ultimate effectiveness of the regulation depends on complementing the financing framework, including the EU budget and the transition fund. For biogas and biomethane investors two questions were important: how high the 2030 target would be, and whether the act would be supplemented with demand-side instruments, such as obligations for fuel suppliers.

The proposal was therefore the beginning of a legislative process that — as the Commission announced — was to gather pace after the presentation, by September 2020, of the plan for the 2030 climate target.

What "climate neutrality" means

Climate neutrality does not mean zero emissions in every sector. It is about a balance: remaining emissions, for example from agriculture, must be offset by absorption by forests, soils and CO₂ removal technologies. For agriculture and waste, where methane and nitrous oxide emissions are hard to eliminate completely, this means pressure to reduce them where technically possible — and methane fermentation of slurry, manure and biowaste is precisely one such solution.