The European Commission has published today the 2024 Climate Action Progress Report, showing that net EU greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fell by 8.3% in 2023 compared to the previous year. This is the largest annual drop in decades, with the exception of 2020 when COVID-19 led to emission cuts of 9.8%. Net GHG emissions are now 37% below 1990 levels, while […]
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What is the EU’s disaster response?
The frequency and intensity of natural disasters in Europe is increasing. Largely due to climate change and urbanisation, Europeans have had to deal with more extreme weather including heatwaves, droughts, wildfires, floods and storms in recent years. Natural disasters in Europe As the European Environmental Agency points out, global temperatures have been increasing, with 2023 being the warmest year […]
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EU imposes duties on unfairly subsidised electric vehicles from China
Today the European Commission concluded its anti-subsidy investigation by imposing definitive countervailing duties on imports of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from China for a period of five years. As previously disclosed, the investigation found that the BEV value chain in China benefits from unfair subsidization which is causing threat of economic injury to EU producers of BEVs. As […]
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8 ways life in the EU is becoming greener
Shifting to a greener way of life is crucial to address the climate emergency and reduce our dependency on fossil fuels, especially those from Russia. The EU and its 27 countries have adopted new common rules with the so-called ‘Fit for 55 package’ to reduce the EU’s carbon footprint. The objective is to cut net greenhouse gas […]
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Geothermal energy: Potential and benefits
Geothermal energy has significant potential to assist in achieving EU targets for the uptake of renewables and the decarbonisation of the energy sector, particularly for heating and cooling. Geothermal energy is a renewable energy source harnessed from the thermal energy stored in rocks and fluids deep within the earth’s crust. Drilled wells connect the fluid […]
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Why are the caps attached to the bottles?
The changes we are seeing to plastic bottle caps are part of a wide-ranging effort to combat the increasing plastic pollution affecting our seas and oceans and their wildlife. Have you noticed any changes in plastic bottle caps lately? It takes some time to get used to the fact that plastic caps are now attached […]
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EU invests €4.8 billion of emissions trading revenues in innovative net-zero projects
The Commission has today selected 85 innovative net zero emission projects to receive €4.8 billion in grants from the Innovation Fund to help deploy cutting-edge clean technologies across Europe. The 2023 call for proposals awards for the first time projects of various sizes (large, medium and small, as well as pilot projects) focusing on clean […]
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European Parliament approves more efficient and greener EU airspace
On Tuesday, MEPs paved the way for improved management of European airspace, enabling more direct flights and fewer delays, and supporting climate neutrality. The reform of Single European Sky rules, already agreed upon in negotiations with the Council last March, strengthens national performance plans for air navigation services and will help to improve EU airspace […]
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New Commission measures to help Member States recover from climate disasters
Today, the European Commission is taking further steps to support Member States affected by unprecedented climate-related disasters. As announced by European Commission President von der Leyen during her visit to Poland on 19 September 2024, the Commission is proposing amendments to three EU regulations to ensure that EU funds can be quickly mobilised in support of post-disaster recovery. The amendments concern the Regulations governing […]
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