Activities of Jessica STEGRUD related to 2021/0201(COD)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EU) 2018/841 as regards the scope, simplifying the compliance rules, setting out the targets of the Member States for 2030 and committing to the collective achievement of climate neutrality by 2035 in the land use, forestry and agriculture sector, and (EU) 2018/1999 as regards improvement in monitoring, reporting, tracking of progress and review
Amendments (19)
Amendment 22 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) In Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 of the European Parliament and of the Council30 , the Union has enshrined the target of economy-wide climate neutrality by 2050 in legislation. That Regulation also establishes a binding Union commitment to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions (emissions after deduction of removals) by at least 55 % below 1990 levels by 2030. All sectors of the economy are expected to contribute to achieving that target, including the land use, land use change and forestry sector. The contribution of net removals to the 2030 Union climate target is limited to 225 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent. In the context of Regulation (EU) 2021/1119, the Commission reaffirmed in a corresponding statement its intention to propose a revision of Regulation (EU) 2018/841 of the European Parliament and of the Council31 , in line with the ambition to increase net carbon removals to levels above 300 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in the land use, land use change and forestry sector by 2030is underlying ambition should, however, not threaten national sovereignty regarding forestry. Furthermore, measures should in the first place target sectors, where the efforts are most cost-efficient, decisions which should be taken by individual member states. The contribution of net removals to the 2030 Union climate target may be expected to reach 225 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, which is not a binding target. __________________ 30Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 June 2021 establishing the framework for achieving climate neutrality and amending Regulations (EC) No 401/2009 and (EU) 2018/1999 (‘European Climate Law’) (OJ L 243, 9.7.2021, p. 1).’. 31Regulation (EU) 2018/841 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on the inclusion of greenhouse gas emissions and removals from land use, land use change and forestry in the 2030 climate and energy framework, and amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 and Decision No 529/2013/EU (OJ L 156, 19.6.2018, p. 1).
Amendment 24 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 4 a (new)
Recital 4 a (new)
(4a) Forest management is highly dependent on geographical factors and furthermore interlinked with industrial structures, which naturally differ between Member States. It is therefore imperative that national sovereignty is preserved in all matters that are linked to forestry.
Amendment 26 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 4 b (new)
Recital 4 b (new)
Amendment 27 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) In order to contribute to the increased ambition to reduce greenhouse gas net emissions from at least 40 % to at least 55 % below 1990 levels, non-binding annual targets for net greenhouse gas removals should be set out for each Member State in the land use, land use change and forestry sector in the period from 2026 to 2030 (in analogy to the annual emission allocations set out in Regulation (EU) 2018/842 of the European Parliament and of the Council32 ), resulting in a target, potentially resulting in a net uptake of 310225 millions of tonnes CO2 equivalent of net removals for the Union as a whole in 2030. The methodology used to establish the national targets for 2030 should take into account the average greenhouse gas emissions and removals from the years 2016, 2017 and 2018, reported by each Member State, and reflect the current mitigation performance of the land use, land use change and forestry sector, and each Member State’s share of the managed land area in the Union, taking into account the capacity of that Member State to improve its performance in the sector via land management practices or changes in land use that benefbe abolished and replaced by targets individually decided by the Member States. Thus, the LULUCF targets will be integrated with the climate and biodiversity. __________________ 32Regulation (EU) 2018/842 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on binding annual greenhouse gas emission reductions by Member States from 2021 to 2030 contributing to climate action to meet commitments under the Paris Agreement and amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 (OJ L 156, 19.6.2018, p. 26)national ESR targets for maximum flexibility on Member State level.
Amendment 33 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6
Recital 6
(6) The binding aAnnual targets for net greenhouse gas removals should be determined forby each Member State by a linear trajectory. The trajectory should start in 2022, on the average of greenhouse gas emissions repor, considering that a large LULUCF uptake in the past is no guarantee for a high capacity in the future. A long period of high LULUCF uptake may instead by that Member State during 2021, 2022 and 2023 and end in 2030 on the target set out for that Member Stateindicate that a saturation level is coming closer, considering that aging forests have reduced net growth, finally reaching zero, when natural growth and natural decomposition are equal. For Member States that improve their methodology of calculating the emissions and removals, a concept of technical correction should be introduced. A technical correction should be added to the target of that Member State corresponding to the effect of the change in methodology on the targets and the efforts of the Member State to achieve them, in order to respect environmental integrity.
Amendment 39 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) The Communication of 17 September 2020 on Stepping up Europe’s 2030 climate ambition33 outlined an option to combine agriculture non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions with land use, land use change and forestry net removals, thus creating a newly regulated land sector. Such combination can promote synergies between land-based mitigation actions and enable more integrated policymaking and policy implementation at national and Union level. To this end, the obligation for Member States to submit integrated mitigation plans for the land sector should be reinforced. In this context, it should be considered that exaggerated uptake targets for an integrated LULUCF/agricultural sector may create incentives to reduce agriculture and plant forests on former agricultural land, thus reducing agricultural production. This, in turn, may increase imports of agricultural products and increase emissions of greenhouse gases in a global perspective. __________________ 33 COM(2020) 562 final.
Amendment 41 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 8
Recital 8
(8) The land sector has the potential to become rapidly climate-neutral by 2035 in a cost-effective manner, and subsequently generate more greenhouse gas removals than emissions. A collective commitment aiming to achieve climate-neutrality in the land sector in 2035 at EU level can provide the needed planning certainty to drive land-based mitigation action in the short term, considering that it can take many years for such action to deliver the desired mitigation outcomes. Moreover, the land sector is projected to become the largest sector in the EU greenhouse gas flux profile in 2050. It is therefore particularly important to anchor that sector to a trajectory that can effectively deliver net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. By mid-2024, the Member States should submit their updated integrated national energy and climate plans in accordance with Article 14 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council34 . The plans should include relevant measures by which each Member State best contributes to the collective target of climate neutrality in the land sector at EU level in 2035. On the basis of these plans, the Commission should propose national targets, ensuring that the Union-wide greenhouse gas emissions and removals in the land use, land use change and forestry sector and the emissions from the agriculture non-CO2 sectors are at least balanced by 2035. Contrary to the EU level target of climate neutrality for the land sector by 2035, such national targets will be binding and enforceable on each Member State. __________________ 34Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action, amending Regulations (EC) No 663/2009 and (EC) No 715/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Directives 94/22/EC, 98/70/EC, 2009/31/EC, 2009/73/EC, 2010/31/EU, 2012/27/EU and 2013/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, Council Directives 2009/119/EC and (EU) 2015/652 and repealing Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 328, 21.12.2018, p.1)reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by 2035 in a cost-effective manner.
Amendment 51 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) The accounting rules set out in Articles 6, 7, 8 and 10 of Regulation (EU) 2018/841 were designed to determine the extent to which mitigation performance in the land use, land use change and forestry sector could contribute to the 2030 EU target for reduction of greenhouse gas net emissions of 40 %, which did not include the land use, land use change and forestry sector. In order to simplify the regulatory framework for that sector, the current accounting rules should not apply after 2025, and the compliance with national targets of the Member States should be verified on the basis of reported greenhouse gas emissions and removals. This ensures methodological consistency with Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council35 , Regulation (EU) 2018/842 of the European Parliament and of the Council36 , and the determination of the new target for reduction of greenhouse gas net emissions of at least 55 %, which also includes the land use, land use change and forestry sector). __________________ 35Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Councils of 13 October 2003 establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading with the Community and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC (OJ L 275, 25.10.2003, p. 32) as amended by Directive (EU) 2018/410 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2018 amending Directive 2003/87/EC to enhance cost-effective emission reductions and low-carbon investments, and Decision (EU) 2015/1814 (OJ L 76, 19.3.2018, p. 3). 36Regulation (EU) 2018/842 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on binding annual greenhouse gas emission reductions by Member States from 2021 to 2030 contributing to climate action to meet commitments under the Paris Agreement and amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 (OJ L 156, 19.6.2018, p. 26).
Amendment 64 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) In order to sustain a solid raw material base and simultaneously enhance greenhouse gas removals, individual farmers or forest managers need a direct incentive to storproduce more carbonwood material on their land and their forests. New business models based on carbon farming incentives and on the certification of carbon removals need to be increasingly deployconsidered in the period until 2030. Such incentives and business models will enhance climate mitigation in the bio- economy, including through the use of durable harvested wood products, in full respect of ecological principles fostering biodiversity and the circular economy. Hence, new categories of carbon storage products should be introduced in addition to the harvested wood products. The emerging business models, farming and land management practices to enhance removals contribute to a balanced territorial development and economic growth in rural areas. They also create opportunities for new jobs and provide incentives for relevant training, reskilling and upskilling.
Amendment 66 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10 a (new)
Recital 10 a (new)
(10a) The construction sector has the potential to use forestry products in large quantities and store carbon in the form of lignocellulose for many decades. Thus, measures should be taken to encourage wood as a construction material and also to ensure that resulting uptake is accounted for. Such long-term sequestration of carbon from the atmosphere, provided that harvested forests are replanted, should thus be acknowledged as a territorial uptake of carbon dioxide in the total emission's balance of the Member State in question.
Amendment 70 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10 b (new)
Recital 10 b (new)
(10b) Furthermore, the mechanisms to substitute fossil raw materials with biomaterials, such as wood, should be strengthened. The forestry sector has an excellent potential to supply renewable products that can replace fossil-based materials. This potential, however, will be reduced if the forestry sector becomes overregulated.
Amendment 78 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) Considering the specificities of the land use, land use change and forestry sector in each Member State, as well as the fact that Member States need to increase their performance to achieve their national binding targets, a range of flexibilities should remain at the disposal of the Member States, including trading surpluses and the extension of forest-specific flexibilities, while respecting the environmental integrity of the targets.
Amendment 83 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 13
Recital 13
Amendment 88 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
Amendment 131 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Regulation (EU) 2018/841
Article 4 – paragraph 2
Article 4 – paragraph 2
Amendment 140 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Regulation (EU) 2018/841
Article 4 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1
Article 4 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1
The Commission shall adopt implementing acts setting out the annual targets based on the linear trajectory for net greenhouse gas removals for each Member State, for each year in the period from 2026 to 2029 in terms of tonnes CO2 equivalent. These national trajectories shall be based on the average greenhouse gas inventory data for the years 2021, 2022 and 2023, reported by each Member State. The value of the 310 million tonnes CO2 equivalent net removals as a sum of the targets for Member States set out in Annex IIa may be subject to a technical correction due to a change of methodology by Member States. The method for determinatMember States shall autonomously decide their LULUCF targets and integrate them with their national efforts to reduce net emissions of the technical correction to be added to the targets of the Member States, shall be set out in these implementing acts. For the purpose of those implementing acts, the Commission shall carry out a comprehensive review of the most recent national inventory data for the years 2021, 2022 and 2023 submitted by Member States pursuant to Article 26(4) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999greenhouse gases. Member States are thus free to trade net emissions and uptakes between its various sectors on a territorial basis.
Amendment 155 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Regulation (EU) 2018/841
Article 4 – paragraph 4
Article 4 – paragraph 4
Amendment 240 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2
Article 3 – paragraph 2
Amendment 242 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex II – paragraph 1
Annex II – paragraph 1
Regulation (EU) 2018/841
Annex II a
Annex II a