Dozens of environmental groups jointly called on Monday for the European Union to eliminate carbon removal methods from its climate plans, arguing some of them rely on untested technology while others may not absorb all greenhouse gas emissions declare.
The EU’s Executive Commission has proposed creating a system to certify so-called offsets – carbon absorbed through nature or by technological means – which could then be purchased by polluters to reduce their carbon balance.
But some 170 groups including Friends of the Earth, Corporate Accountability and the Center for International Environmental Law say plans to use fields, forests or machines for future large-scale removal of carbon from the atmosphere are a “greenwashing fantasy.” .
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Instead, they called on the Commission to commit to real, or gross, cuts in emissions, instead of the sharp cuts that many countries and companies are currently promoting in their climate plans. The 27-nation EU aims to achieve “net zero” emissions by 2050.
Flags symbolizing the European Union fly from a pole in the Belgian capital in front of the Le Berlaymont building in Brussels. Environmental groups are calling on the EU to remove carbon removal methods from its climate plans.
(Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Scientists say emissions of planet-warming gases caused by human activity, such as the burning of fossil fuels, must be halved by 2030 and completely ended by mid-century to keep climate deal goal alive of Paris to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
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The European Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
