Highlights of the deal European Union leaders sealed Friday on an ambitious plan to curb the greenhouse gases that cause global warming.
Goal: To cut EU emissions by at least 20 percent and raise use of renewable energy to 20 percent by 2020. The emissions cut will reach 30 percent if a global climate-change accord is reached.
How: The EU’s “cap and trade” program — in which industries buy or sell emission “credits” — will be expanded to cover several greenhouse gases, not just carbon dioxide. It will be expanded to all major industrial emitters, not just the power sector and steel plants. More eco-friendly cars, fewer power-draining buildings, greener goods and better energy links also will help cut emissions.
Who pays: There will be mandatory emission targets for each EU nation, ranging from minus 20 percent to plus 20 percent so that rich EU nations contribute disproportionately to the fight against climate change. Poor Eastern European nations may increase emissions to allow their economies to catch up with the richer West.
Who wins: Poland gets special treatment to help wean it off the polluting coal-burning power stations that provide nearly all its electricity. Unlike the rest of Europe, power plants there won’t have to pay to pollute until 2020. Eastern European nations will also get billions of euros to help them make the switch to cleaner energy.
Price tag: Major polluters will eventually pay about $66.1 billion a year in emissions-trading charges. Governments are to use this money to encourage clean-energy development.
Renewables: Wind, solar and energy crops must account for 20 percent of EU energy use by 2020, up from 8.5 percent today, saving 900 million metric tons (992 million tons) of carbon dioxide emissions.
The Associated Press
