Latest news with #Pannier-Runacher
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
France says it has common ground with China on environment
France says it has common ground with China on environment (Photo: AFP) France and China have found "points of convergence" on the environment, french minister for ecological transition Agnes Pannier-Runacher said Friday at the end of a visit to Beijing. Her trip came ahead of the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC), which is due to start in Nice on June 9, and the COP30 climate summit in Brazil in November. After the United States again withdrew from the landmark Paris climate agreement once President Donald Trump returned to office in January, France has advocated for the European Union and China to form a united front on environment and climate. "Points of convergence were clearly felt," Pannier-Runacher told AFP after holding meetings with multiple Chinese officials, including environment minister Huang Runqiu and natural resources minister Guan Zhi'ou. "Commitment to the Paris Agreement " and "multilateralism" were two such points, she said. Pannier-Runacher said she was hoping for a joint-statement ahead of the COP30 summit to help give momentum to negotiations. "At a time when science is doubted by some, when the impact of climate deregulation on our lives is contested (...) it is important for the European Union and China to assume their responsibilities," she said. Huang told Pannier-Runacher that China would "keep observing the objectives set by the Paris accord and work with all parties to promote positive results" at the COP30 summit, a statement issued by his ministry said. China is the world's top emitter of greenhouse gases, but has embraced renewable energy sources, electric vehicles and is working to reduce carbon emissions. It plans to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and reach net zero by 2060, and some analysts have speculated that slowing growth and rapid renewable installations mean emissions have already levelled off. Emissions indeed fell in the first quarter of 2025, an independent think tank said earlier this month. Pannier-Runacher hailed China's "dynamism," saying all could learn from its "quickness" on adopting renewable energy technologies . The french minister also said China was a leader in those technologies, and expressed hope it would invest in France and other European countries to create jobs.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
France says it has common ground with China on environment
France and China have found "points of convergence" on the environment, French minister for ecological transition Agnes Pannier-Runacher said Friday at the end of a visit to Beijing. Her trip came ahead of the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC), which is due to start in Nice on June 9, and the COP30 climate summit in Brazil in November. After the United States again withdrew from the landmark Paris climate agreement once President Donald Trump returned to office in January, France has advocated for the European Union and China to form a united front on environment and climate. "Points of convergence were clearly felt," Pannier-Runacher told AFP after holding meetings with multiple Chinese officials, including environment minister Huang Runqiu and natural resources minister Guan Zhi'ou. "Commitment to the Paris Agreement" and "multilateralism" were two such points, she said. Pannier-Runacher said she was hoping for a joint-statement ahead of the COP30 summit to help give momentum to negotiations. "At a time when science is doubted by some, when the impact of climate deregulation on our lives is contested (...) it is important for the European Union and China to assume their responsibilities," she said. Huang told Pannier-Runacher that China would "keep observing the objectives set by the Paris accord and work with all parties to promote positive results" at the COP30 summit, a statement issued by his ministry said. China is the world's top emitter of greenhouse gases, but has embraced renewable energy sources, electric vehicles and is working to reduce carbon emissions. It plans to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and reach net zero by 2060, and some analysts have speculated that slowing growth and rapid renewable installations mean emissions have already levelled off. Emissions indeed fell in the first quarter of 2025, an independent think tank said earlier this month. Pannier-Runacher hailed China's "dynamism," saying all could learn from its "quickness" on adopting renewable energy technologies. The French minister also said China was a leader in those technologies, and expressed hope it would invest in France and other European countries to create jobs. ehl/tc-sst/bgs
France 24
3 days ago
- Business
- France 24
France says it has common ground with China on environment
Her trip came ahead of the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC), which is due to start in Nice on June 9, and the COP30 climate summit in Brazil in November. After the United States again withdrew from the landmark Paris climate agreement once President Donald Trump returned to office in January, France has advocated for the European Union and China to form a united front on environment and climate. "Points of convergence were clearly felt," Pannier-Runacher told AFP after holding meetings with multiple Chinese officials, including environment minister Huang Runqiu and natural resources minister Guan Zhi'ou. "Commitment to the Paris Agreement" and "multilateralism" were two such points, she said. Pannier-Runacher said she was hoping for a joint-statement ahead of the COP30 summit to help give momentum to negotiations. "At a time when science is doubted by some, when the impact of climate deregulation on our lives is contested (...) it is important for the European Union and China to assume their responsibilities," she said. Huang told Pannier-Runacher that China would "keep observing the objectives set by the Paris accord and work with all parties to promote positive results" at the COP30 summit, a statement issued by his ministry said. China is the world's top emitter of greenhouse gases, but has embraced renewable energy sources, electric vehicles and is working to reduce carbon emissions. It plans to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and reach net zero by 2060, and some analysts have speculated that slowing growth and rapid renewable installations mean emissions have already levelled off. Emissions indeed fell in the first quarter of 2025, an independent think tank said earlier this month. Pannier-Runacher hailed China's "dynamism," saying all could learn from its "quickness" on adopting renewable energy technologies. The French minister also said China was a leader in those technologies, and expressed hope it would invest in France and other European countries to create jobs.
Euronews
28-03-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Governments losing patience with European Commission over delayed 2040 climate target proposal
ADVERTISEMENT Several EU governments have demanded the European Commission table an overdue proposal for a 2040 emissions reduction target, the missing milestone on the bloc's pathway to climate-neutrality by mid-century, though a few remain sceptical. Under a law adopted in 2021, the EU is committed to net-zero by 2050, after bringing its carbon emissions to 55% below 1990 levels by the end of this decade. The missing element is a 2040 target, which the EU executive was supposed to table last year, and recently removed from its provisional agenda for the coming weeks. On the way into an EU Council summit in Brussels on Thursday, French environment minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher said she was unconcerned about the delay. 'I have the ambition, and I'll say it again, that we should set the goal before Belem,' Pannier-Runacher said in reference to the COP30 climate summit scheduled to take place in Brazil in November. 'But this objective must be solid and based on trajectories that are achievable.' The French minister was speaking after taking part in a breakfast discussion among 19 pro 'green growth' governments, hosted by Portugal and attended by the EU's climate and environment commissioners Wopke Hoekstra and Jessika Roswall. Hungary seeks veto Hungary remained sceptical, however, with minister Anikó Raisz restating its long-standing position that the decision was of such import that it could only be made by the unanimous agreement of EU heads of government – meaning the country's premier Viktor Orbán could wield a veto. The target as envisaged under the EU's climate law would be subject to the usual legislative process, where support from a qualified majority of governments – and the European Parliament – would be sufficient. Also at the Portuguese breakfast was Germany's Steffi Lemke, who while acknowledging a swing to the right in recent elections meant this was likely to be her last EU Council summit, said she saw no room for backtracking on climate action. 'Those who hesitate and those who want a rollback – incidentally, for reasons completely different from market stabilisation or security interests, who simply want to return to the old fossil world – must not be allowed to have a say, especially in this situation,' Lemke said. During the summit, European Commission Vice-President Teresa Ribera opened a discussion on the climate target and the recently proposed Clean Industrial Deal, a plan to boost European manufacturing and competitiveness in tandem with furthering the energy transition and industrial decarbonisation. Mixed signals over level of ambition 'The Clean Industrial Deal offers certainty and predictability to investors and combines the different tools and conditions that can create a holistic approach on how to facilitate the way forward. to meet our climate targets, both what has been agreed by 2030 but also the target that we need to put forward for 2040,' Ribera said – without indicating when the proposal would be tabled. Several countries – among them Czechia and Slovakia – shared Hungary's doubts about the target, especially the 90% cut recommended as a minimum by the EU's independent climate advisory board and to which the executive recommitted in its Clean Industrial Deal communication. Related Brussels recommends new EU climate target: a 90% cut of all greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 Spain – in whose socialist government Ribera was a minister before moving to the Commission in December – supported the 90% goal and demanded a legislative bill 'as soon as possible', a position echoed by Finland. France reiterated its support for a target, but without explicitly backing the 90% goal. 'The 2040 objective has to be based on realistic measures for all sectors, in particular for European industry,' Pannier-Runacher said during the public debate. The Netherlands also wanted a 'swift and realistic' proposal, while Germany – again without putting a number on it – said the 2040 target should be linked directly to a new one for deploying renewable energy. ADVERTISEMENT Italy did not mention the 2040 target, but described the Commission's 'simplification' drive to ease regulation on businesses as being of 'decisive importance' and that it should 'speed up these efforts' if it wants to boost competitiveness. The 'ball is in the Commission's court' Whether or not they agree on a 90% target, there was a general push for the Commission to get the proposal onto the table so the EU Council and Parliament can get to work on it. Poland chaired the summit as holder of the rotating EU Council presidency. Environment minister Paulina Hennig-Kloska told reporters at the end of the summit that there was no unanimity, but ministers had 'managed to agree as far as the general directions are concerned'. The ball was now in the Commission's court, the Polish minister said. Environment commissioner Roswall recalled that the EU executive remained committed to following the advice of the EU's scientific panel. ADVERTISEMENT 'The 90% emission reduction target for 2040 is in the political guidelines that we have decided on, and we plan to stay the course,' she said. But as to when the proposal will be tabled, all Roswall said was that it was 'coming in the near future'.
Euronews
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
‘Adapting is not giving up': How France is preparing for 4C of heating by 2100
By Euronews Green Affordable insurance in high-risk areas, heatwave-proof housing and different work schedules are among dozens of new measures. ADVERTISEMENT France is preparing for a future where global heating has risen to 4C above pre-industrial levels, sparking more wildfires and eroding its coastlines. The government unveiled its third national climate adaptation plan yesterday (10 March), outlining dozens of measures to protect citizens in a possible 4C by 2100 scenario. First shared by former Prime Minister Michel Barnier in October last year, the plan received almost 6,000 contributions during a public consultation, and has been developed with scientists and other experts. "Adapting is not giving up," Agnès Pannier-Runacher, France's minister of ecological transition, biodiversity, forests, the sea and fisheries, made clear when announcing the plan on social media site X yesterday. 'The government's policy rests on two legs: on the one hand, it continues to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, on the other, it adapts to the effects of climate change.' France is aiming to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, having already seen its emissions drop by 20 per cent since 2017, according to Pannier-Runacher. But even if net zero is achieved by mid-century, scientists still predict temperatures in the country will climb by at least 4C by 2100 due to the continued impacts of burning fossil fuels. What is France's climate adaptation plan? The new plan focuses on four priority areas, in geographic terms: coastlines, mountains, forests and agriculture. Pannier-Runacher visited Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez in the Vendée region on Friday 7 March, Le Monde reports, where she was able to observe the retreat of the coastline. "There is a very strong expectation from local elected officials, particularly in coastal, mountain or forest communities, but also from healthcare professionals and nursing home residents, who are already experiencing the effects of global warming," she told the French newspaper. The package is designed to help sectors across the board - from business and transport, to infrastructure and agriculture - gradually adapt to the consequences of climate change. It plots a trajectory for climate adaptation (TRACC) based on projections from the national weather agency Météo-France. In an incremental way, it prepares the country for temperature increases of 2C by 2030, 2.7C by 2050, and 4C by 2100 compared to pre-industrial levels. Firefighters tackle a blaze in a forest near Le Luc, southern France, August 2021, when several wildfires swept the Mediterranean region. AP Photo/Daniel Cole There are then five categories of action: protecting people, ensuring the resilience of territories and essential services, adapting human activities, protecting natural and cultural heritage, and mobilising national resources. Specific measures include creating a national map of exposure to natural risks, maintaining affordable insurance offerings even in high-risk areas, and improving housing to remain comfortable despite rising temperatures. 'Adapting also means rethinking work,' Pannier-Runacher wrote on X. 'Faced with heatwaves, it is necessary to adjust schedules, strengthen medical monitoring and protect workers. ADVERTISEMENT 'Let us take inspiration from countries like Greece who are already doing this,' she said. French minister warns against a 'Trumpisation of minds' Discussing the climate adaptation plan yesterday, Pannier-Runacher added, 'There is a form of Trumpisation of minds. Ecology is not a subject reserved for the bobos [bourgeois-bohemian subset] of the big cities.' US President Donald Trump has been gutting federal agencies dedicated to climate science since taking office in January. The French government, though it has been criticised for U-turning on some environmental measures recently, signalled a different direction with its climate plan. 'The main victims of climate change, those who risk their health or lose their homes and jobs, are the working classes, contrary to what the populists try to make us believe,' Pannier-Runacher said. ADVERTISEMENT Does France's climate adaptation plan go far enough? France has put itself ahead of the curve on climate adaptation, after being caught unawares by a deadly heatwave in 2003. The country has a detailed national heatwave plan in place, and cities like Paris are taking efforts a step further as they prepare for potential 50C summers. Pannier-Runacher revealed that €1.6 billion in budgetary resources will be dedicated to the plan from 2025. That includes €1 billion from water agencies' budgets, and €300 million from the Barnier Fund, set up for the prevention of major natural hazards. Environmental groups have welcomed the plan, but raised concerns about how the measures will be implemented, and whether they are ambitious enough. Speaking to French news agency AFP, vice-president of France Nature Environnement Nicolas Richard said it presents "a certain number of good intentions" but faces uncertainty about "whether they are funded and how they are managed". ADVERTISEMENT According to a recent report from the Institute for Climate Economics, between €1 billion and €2.5 billion should be invested annually just in new buildings, €4.4 billion for housing renovation, and at least €1.5 billion per year for agriculture.
