‘Fit for 55’ package will bring EU closer to climate neutrality

On 14 July, the European Commission cut greenhouse-gas emissions by 55% in 2030 compared to 1990, in a major step towards achieving climate-neutral goals by 2050 under the European Union’s Green Deal will present a huge package of draft legislation to The name of this package is ‘Fit for 55’. This is a significant development that will bring the EU very close to being climate neutral.

What is this ‘Fit for 55’?
The ‘Fit for 55’ package is the draft of the upcoming legislation of the European Union (EU). It is designed to support a political pledge that intended to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent from 1990 levels by 2030.

This target is more ambitious than the previous target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030. It is part of the EU’s goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050 (and prompting the rest of the world to act under the 2015 Paris Agreement to fight climate change). In a broader context, it aims to execute a European ‘Green Deal’ to make the EU more sustainable, inclusive and competitive.

The EU is the leading organization of countries that in December 2020 agreed to a target of a total reduction of 55 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. This set a stage for European legislative proposals aimed at achieving that goal.

This package will consist of 12 offers. Since the previous target of cutting polluting emissions by up to 40% is already included in European legislation, much of the package will be devoted to proposed reforms to these parts of the law to make it in line with the 55% reduction target. Can you

Its industrial purposes include many things. such as reducing dependence on all fossil fuels, including coal, oil and natural gas, further expanding the use of alternative energy sources such as solar, wind and hydroelectricity, accelerating the development of electric cars, and aviation and shipping. To motivate towards adopting alternatives of clean energy etc.

Time limit

The European Commission is to submit its proposals on July 14, ranging from limiting carbon dioxide emissions from cars to importing taxes on defective steel.

While this package will require the approval of the governments of the countries included in the European Union, on the other hand, the approval of the European Parliament will also be required. This is a process that will affect their agenda for at least 12 months. During this time things like intensive mobilization, difficult negotiations and demands for reforms in many aspects can come to the fore.

Five main elements

1) More difficult emissions restrictions for power plants and factories

This package will include a proposal to change the law that covers industries, in which a provision has been made to cut the emission of greenhouse gases by 40%.

Discharges of industries have been regulated and will be cut more aggressively. This will be done through the European Emissions Trading System or ETS. Through this, pollution permits are given to more than 10,000 industrial units (this will be required for those who have increased their quota to buy surplus allowance from businesses) and the European Commission will try to reduce the overall supply sharply. European airlines also come under the ambit of ETS.

The revised ETS law will sharply cut down on the number of pollution-related permissions, as well as address the issue of how many of them get this permission for free (as opposed to auctions, which help collect revenue for the government). Simultaneously, the principle of ‘Populator Pay’ is applied therein). In addition, the scope of the ETS law can be further expanded to include shipping.

2) More stringent rules for setting national-level limits on greenhouse gases from surface transport (road rail and shipping), buildings, agriculture and waste

The package includes a proposal to amend certain laws, under which industrial units are responsible for 60% of the greenhouse gases emitted by countries in the European Union.

These non-ETS sectors are covered under the Effort Sharing Regulation, or ESR, of the European Union. This regulation is implemented through policies formulated by the member states of the European Union and is monitored by the Commission. EU countries face binding and varied targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their ESR sector.