Speech by Johan-Marcus Carlson-Reich

Page 1:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008OKAN -MARWU) CARLSOU-REICH |EVROPEAN COMMISSIONLadies and Gentlemen,| am pleased to be given the opportunity to address thisimportant audience today to speak about an issue ofcentral importance for the future of mankind — climatechange and the European approach to address it at homeand internationally.Let there be no mistake: This is not just an environmentalchallenge like any other. Climate change is one of theworst crises to be tackled by policymakers all over theworld. This is an environmental issue but also adevelopment problem and has the potential of leading toan economic and social crisis in many countries, also inEurope if mitigation and adaptation policies are not put inplace.The International Panel on Climate Change in its 2007report has clearly underlined the role of human activitiesas the main cause of climate change. In our offices,representing our peoples, we need to listen to this lastwarning and act urgently to avoid the worstconsequences of climate change and to deal with thoseconsequences that we can no longer avoid. There is noscientific doubt, we are aware of the possiblePage 2:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008consequence of climate change — let us not sleepwalk intodisaster.Let me illustrate what is at stake: If we do not act urgentlyto address this challenge, global mean temperatures willincrease by between 1.8 to 4 degrees Celsius this centuryand in the worst case scenario by as much as 6.4°C. Asthose are global average levels, increases over land willbe even higher and go hand in hand with more frequentand more intense weather events such as flooding andheat waves in central Europe. This will have devastatingconsequences not only for ecosystems and livelihoods inmany places around the globe, but it will also lead to direeconomic losses — Sir Nicolas Stern has put a price tag ofbetween 5 to 20% of global gross domestic product tothis, a truly horrifying figure.The good news, however, is that the cost of avoiding allthis is rather small compared to the potential impacts ofclimate change. Instead of gambling with the climate weshould be investing about one percent of GDP around theworld and seek to transform our economies into lowcarbon economies. We can create hundreds of thousandsof sustainable jobs while switching to low carbontechnologies only in Europe. This is the economic andPage 3:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008industrial agenda for this century that we need to developfurther with courage and creative imagination.Of course, many will say Europe cannot do this alone —and | certainly agree with that. This is why we are currentlynegotiating a new international agreement to addressclimate change under the Bali Roadmap of the UNFramework Convention on Climate Change. It is largelythanks to the European leadership over the last years thatthis negotiation process is now firmly in place. The EU hasbeen successful in convincing other Parties thatnegotiations need to conclude by 2009 and we managedto increase trust among, in particular, developing countrieson the seriousness of our intention. We need to continuemoving the negotiation process forward by puttingconcrete and credible ideas on the table before the nextConferences of the Parties in Poznan this year and inCopenhagen in 2009.Bali was just the start of negotiations — we now have aprocess that we need to fill with substance. The talks inBonn were concluded before the summer. It is very clearthat others are looking at the EU to lead the way. We havenow entered into concrete discussions about whatcommitments we expect from developed countries andwhat actions developing countries need to take. We arePage 4:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008also discussing adaptation and innovative means ofmobilizing finance and enhancing technology cooperation.There are now many good ideas on the table and we needto make use of our time before Poznan in December todevelop a common understanding of the overallarchitecture we foresee for the Copenhagen agreement.We need to devise a global deal together with ourinternational Partners which is ambitious but fair toeveryone.The EU is strong and credible because it speaks with onevoice and is able to demonstrate real progress in domesticpolicies to address climate change. The proposals putforward by the Commission in the climate change andenergy package of January this year not only constitute anambitious policy for Europe but also serve as inspirationfor the international negotiations on how to share thenecessary efforts among Parties with very differentnational and economic circumstances.Looking at our domestic efforts, the European Council ofMarch 2007 set out the pathway for a low-carbon Europe,by agreeing on two key binding targets:Page 5:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008e a reduction of at least 20% in greenhouse gases by2020 — rising to 30% if there is an internationalagreement committing other developed countries to"comparable emissions reductions",e a 20% share of renewable energies in EU energyconsumption by 2020.This January, the Commission adopted the climate andenergy package designed to achieve these objectives.Negotiations on this are very much ongoing, but theambitious but yet feasible agenda is to finalize these bythe end of this year, in time for a joint EU position for thefinalizing of the international agreement in Copenhagen in2009.It is often pointed out how much there is to lose if we fail toaddress climate change. What is less understood is whatwe stand to gain from more international cooperation toaddress climate change:e climate security and solidaritye more sustainable growth and better jobse a low-carbon, more efficient and secure energysystem.Page 6:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008In order to rally all countries behind the 2 degrees Celsiusobjective - which will mean halving global emissions by2050 compared to 1990 levels - the EU must show theworld, and in particular developed countries, that thetransition to a low-carbon and energy-efficient economy(a) is technically and economically feasible, and (b) willstrengthen — NOT undermine - our economy and ourcompetitiveness.A static debate about costs thus would only give us apartial view of the approach we outlined in January'sClimate and Energy Package. It would overlook thebenefits that we could derive from an ambitious climatepolicy. The EU should focus on reaping the economicopportunities offered by low-carbon solutions.One of these opportunities is in the field of energyefficiency. From a purely economic point of view, resourceefficiency makes a lot of sense. European economy cangreatly benefit from intelligent manufacturing practices thatmake a more rational use of resources.Page 7:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008Although Europe is already one of the world’s most energyefficient regions, it can go much further. The EU's share ofthe world's ecological footprint is more than twice its shareof the global population. The EU average materialintensity is twice as high as in Japan and it is estimatedthat the EU could save at least 20% of its current energyconsumption in a cost-effective way.Resource and energy efficiency will be the basis ofEurope's future competitiveness and is at the heart of oursustainability strategy. Innovation in clean technologieswill give Europe a first-mover advantage over ourcompetitors. Besides reducing greenhouse gas emissions,the Commission's climate and energy package proposalwill bring significant health benefits and other cost savingsthrough lower air pollution. The package will promote thedevelopment of what will become the backbone of futureenergy systems: wind turbines, carbon capture andstorage, smart grids, distributed generation, efficient cars,solar heating and cooling, and passive houses.This package not only represents the appropriateresponse to the request from the European Council, butalso conveys a clear signal to the rest of the world, whichPage 8:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008cannot be ignored: the European Union takes the fightagainst climate change seriously and assumes itsresponsibility. At the same time, this package gives asignal to our partners in the developed and in thedeveloping countries to join our efforts — to our mutual andcommon interest. We are ready to take the first step, to setan example and go ahead, in order to convince ourpartners to sign up to an effective and comprehensiveinternational agreement. The need to conclude such anagreement in line with the Bali roadmap was an importantdriver in shaping our proposals. The eyes of the world willbe on Poznan later this year to make progress instructuring the post-2012 agreement and paving the wayfor the next crucial year of negotiations.To conclude, we have to accept that the transition to alow-carbon economy will not happen overnight. It will takedecades and affect every sector of the economy. But wecannot afford delaying action. Decisions taken over thecoming years will have profound consequences for energysecurity, for climate change and for our society as awhole.Page 9:Speech on climate change and energy efficiency,BSPC, Visby, 1-2 August 2008The climate and energy package is an opportunity forEurope to show itself at its best. It is the right approach atthe right time. It will put Europe on track towards its long-term goal of a sustainable, low-carbon, highly efficient andcompetitive economy.