Activities of Mick WALLACE related to 2019/2712(RSP)
Plenary speeches (1)
Climate and environmental emergency - 2019 UN Climate Change Conference (COP25) (debate)
Institutional motions (1)
MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the 2019 UN Climate Change Conference in Madrid, Spain (COP 25)
Amendments (37)
Amendment 2 #
Citation 12 a (new)
- having regard to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special reports entitled ‘Climate Change and Land’ and ‘the Ocean and Cryosphere’ and their synthesis reports,
Amendment 7 #
Citation 15
— having regard to the World Meteorological Organisation’s (WMO) “Statement on the state of the global climate in 2018” from March 2019 as well as, the 14th WMO “Greenhouse Gas Bulletin” of 22 November 2018, and the World Meteorological Organisation high-level synthesis report entitled ‘United in Science’,
Amendment 9 #
Citation 16
— having regard to the summary for policymakers of the Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services of the Intergovernmental Science- Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service of 6 May 2019, and its summary for policymakers,
Amendment 17 #
Recital C
C. whereas the past four years – 2015 to 2018 – were the top four warmest years in the global temperature record and whereas 2018 saw a record high in global carbon emissions; whereas July 2019 was the hottest month on record and the year 2019 continues the current trend, putting 2015-2019 on track to be the hottest five years on record, according to the WMO:
Amendment 21 #
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas the commitments made so far by the signatories to the Paris Agreement will not be sufficient to achieve the common goal; whereas the current NDC submitted by the EU and its Member States is also not in line with the goals set out in the Paris Agreement and needs to be revised;
Amendment 27 #
Recital C b (new)
Cb. whereas elements of EU legislation contributing to the fulfilment of the EU NDC, in particular the Renewable Energy Directive and the Energy Efficiency Directive, were concluded with an increased but still insufficient level of ambition, bringing the EU to a GHG emissions reduction target of at least 45% by 2030; whereas a 45% reduction in the EU by 2030 does not yet make a sufficient contribution to attaining the goals of the Paris Agreement and the mid-century goal of net-zero emissions;
Amendment 29 #
Recital C c (new)
Cc. whereas, according to the WMO, global CO2 concentration was 407.8 parts per million(ppm) in 2018, 2.2 ppm higher than 2017, and CO2 concentrations are on track to reach or even exceed 410 ppm by the end of 2019;
Amendment 30 #
Recital C d (new)
Cd. whereas climate strikes have taken place in 185 countries across the world as part of a global movement, with a record of 7.6 million people taking to the streets in September 2019, constituting the largest climate mobilisation in history:
Amendment 31 #
Recital C e (new)
Ce. whereas the IPCC’s 1.5° C report demonstrates that the impacts of temperature increase are likely to be significantly less severe at a 1.5° C increase than at a 2° C increase;
Amendment 32 #
Recital C f (new)
Cf. whereas the failure of major emitters to reduce their GHG emissions in line with the action required to limit the global average temperature rise to 1.5° C exacerbates the already enormous scale and costs of the necessary adaptation to climate change, with particularly serious consequences for least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing states (SIDS); whereas all initiatives by LDCs and SIDS to produce risk information and early warnings should be supported;
Amendment 33 #
Recital C g (new)
Cg. whereas it is untenable to let adaptation costs lie where they fall and those bearing the main responsibility for GHG emissions must shoulder most of the global burden;
Amendment 34 #
Recital C h (new)
Ch. whereas forests contribute substantially to climate change mitigation and adaptation; whereas deforestation accounts for nearly 20% of global GHG emissions and is driven in particular by expanding industrial production of livestock, soy and palm oil, including for the EU market; whereas the EU should reduce its indirect contributions to deforestation (‘embodied deforestations’), for which it bears a responsibility;
Amendment 35 #
Paragraph 1
1. Recalls that climate change is one of, as a cause and multiplier of other risks, is the most important challenges facing humanity; stresses that climate change is an emergency that requires an emergency response, that a mass extinction is taking place and that all states and players worldwide need to do their utmosteverything possible to fight it; underlines that timely international cooperation, solidarity as well as consistent and persistent commitment to joint action is the only solution to fulfil our collective responsibility of preserving the entire planet and stopping a climate breakdown;
Amendment 36 #
Paragraph 1
1. Recalls that climate change is one of, as a cause and multiplier of other risks, is the most important challenges facing humanity and that all states and players worldwide need to do their utmost to fight it; underlines that timely international cooperation, solidarity as well as consistent and persistent commitment to joint action is the only solution to fulfil our collective responsibility of preserving the entire planet and stopping a climate breakdown;
Amendment 43 #
Paragraph 2
2. Acknowledges that the serious risks of climate change are at the heart of citizens’people's concerns; welcomes the fact that people across the world, in particular younger generations, are increasingly active in fighting for climate action; welcomes their calls for greater collective ambition and swift action in order not to overshoot the 1.5°C limit; believes that national, regional and local governments, as well as the EU, should heed these calls;
Amendment 47 #
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Amendment 50 #
Paragraph 3
3. Highlights that all citizens already face direct impacts of climate changthe direct impacts of climate change are already being felt; highlights that, according to the 2019 report by the Global Commission on Adaptation, climate change could push more than 100 million people into poverty by 2030 and crop yields could decrease by 5-30 % by 2050 leaving especially vulnerable areas, food insecure; underlines that, according to the European Environment Agency, average annual losses caused by weather and climate- related extremes in the Union alone amounted to around EUR 12.8 billion between 2010 and 2016, and that, if no further action is taken, climate damages in the EU could amount to at least EUR 190 billion by 2080, equivalent to a net welfare loss of 1.8 % of its current GDP;
Amendment 53 #
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Highlights that the burden of climate change is already, and will continue to be, overwhelmingly on the countries of the Global South, that the countries of the Global South are more vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change than the Global North, and that the countries of the Global South have contributed considerably less than the Global North in terms of greenhouse gas emissions;
Amendment 58 #
Paragraph 4
4. Underlines that the IPCC 1.5° special report represents the most comprehensive and up-to-date scientific assessment of mitigation pathways in line with the Paris Agreement; emphasises that, according to this report, having a good chance of keeping the global temperature below 1.5°C by 2100 with no or limited overshoot implies reaching net-zero GHG emissions globally by 2067 at the latest, and reducing annual global GHG emissions by 2030 to a maximum of 27.4 Gt CO2eq per year; stresses that, in the light of these findings and in line with the Paris Agreement, the Union, as a global leader, and other major global economies need to strive towards reaching net-zero GHG emissions as early as possible, ideally by 2040, and by 2050 at the latest;
Amendment 63 #
Paragraph 5
5. Expresses concern at the UN Environment 2018 Emissions Gap Report, which finds that current unconditional nationally determined contributions (NDCs) far surpass the Paris Agreement warming limit of well below 2°C, leading instead to an estimated 3.2°C4 warming by 2100 assuming that climate action continues consistently throughout the 21st century; notes, therefore, that the EU's NDC needs to be revised by early 2020 in order to close the emissions gap; _________________ 4UN Environment Programme, ‘Emissions Gap Report 2018’, p.21.
Amendment 71 #
Paragraph 7
7. Stresses that the IPBES 2019 Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land (SRCCL) and the Global Commission on Adaptation’ report on Adaptation (GCA), recognises climate change as one of the main direct drivers of biodiversity loss during the past 50 yearsand land degradation, and underlines that its negative effects on nature and, biodiversity, eco-systems services and food security, are projected to become increasingly important in the next decades;
Amendment 95 #
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the country holding the EU Presidency and the Commission to submit to the UNFCCC as soon as possible the Union’s long-term strategy to reach domestic net-zero emissions in 2050; stresses that in order to reach domestic net- zero GHG emissions in 2050 in the most cost-efficient manner, and in order to avoid relying on carbon removal technologies that would entail significant risks for ecosystems, biodiversity and food security, the 2030 ambition level will need to be raised; believes it to be of the utmost importance for the Union to send a clear message during the UN Climate Summit in September 2019 that it stands readyexpresses regret at the EU's contribution to the UN Climate Summit in September 2019 and considers it a missed opportunity for the EU to announce its intention to enhance its contribution to the Paris Agreement;
Amendment 105 #
Paragraph 11
11. Supports an update of the Union’s NDC to at least 65% GHG emissions reductions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels; calls, therefore, on EU leaders to support an increase in the level of ambition of the Union’s NDC; calls also on other global economies to update their NDCs to bring about global effects;
Amendment 120 #
Paragraph 13
13. Recognises the achievements of the COP24 in Katowice, which reinforced the momentum for climate action, and with the completion of the Paris Agreement Work Program (the Katowice Rulebook), delivered operational guidance for the Paris Agreement; notes however, that some unfinished business from Katowice must be completed at COP25, namely on Article 6 mechanisms; considers in addition that several implementation decisions will need to be taken at COP25, specifically in the areas of mitigation, adaptation, transparency and support; notes the need for progress on loss and damage through the Review of the Warsaw International Mechanism; notes the work on translating the COP24 rules on reporting planned and provided climate finance and capacity-building support; regrets that the Paris Rulebook was not concluded in full at COP24 and that the COP24 conclusions merely noted the IPCC Special Report on 1.5°C;
Amendment 149 #
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19a. Emphasises the need for nature- based solutions as the most effective form of mitigation and adaptation that also promotes biodiversity;
Amendment 164 #
Paragraph 22
22. Stresses that the EU’s budget should be coherent with its international commitments on sustainable development and with its mid- and long-term climate and energy targets and should not be counterproductive to these targets or hampering their implementation; calls therefore for the next EU budget to set at least a 40% climate action spending target, calls therefore on the Commission to put forward, where applicable, harmonised and binding rules on climate and biodiversity proofing of EU investments, including clear exclusion criteria for fossil fuels;
Amendment 191 #
Paragraph 24
24. Expresses its satisfaction withWelcomes the growing global mobilisation of an ever- broader range of non-state actors committed to climate action with concrete and measurable deliverables; highlights the critical role of civil society, the private sector and sub- state governments in pressurising and driving public opinion and state action; calls on the EU, the Member States and all Parties to stimulate, facilitate and engage with non-state actors, who increasingly become frontrunners in the fight against climate change;
Amendment 202 #
Paragraph 26
26. Underlines that 80% of people displaced by climate change are women, who are in general more impacted by climate change than men yet bear a greater burden while not being as involved in key decision-making on climate action; stresses therefore that women’s empowerment, as well as their full and equal participation and leadership in international forums, of all marginalised gender communities, including women, girls, and the transgender community, such as the UNFCCC, and national, regional and local climate action, are vital for the success and effectiveness of such action; calls on the EU and the Member States to mainstream the gender perspective into climate policies, and to promote the participation of indigenous women and women’s rights defenders and defenders and of the transgender community within the UNFCCC framework;
Amendment 207 #
Paragraph 27
Amendment 210 #
Paragraph 27 a (new)
27a. Considers that the European Union scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading has failed, having proved ineffective in achieving the emission reduction targets; stresses that the creation of more carbon markets is compromising and undermining the adoption of other environmental regulations;
Amendment 215 #
Paragraph 27 c (new)
27c. Points to the importance of a realistic, integrated and cross-cutting approach to climate change, widening the range of means employed to reach reduction targets and avoiding reliance on market-based instruments alone;
Amendment 240 #
Paragraph 32
32. Notes that approximately 60 % of the world’s methane is emitted by sources such as agriculture, landfills and wastewater, and the production and pipeline transport of fossil fuels; recalls that methane is a potent GHG with a 100- year global warming potential, 28 times more powerful than CO2 ; reminds the Commission of its legal obligation to explore as soon as possible policy options for rapidly addressing and averting methane emissions, including from gas, as part of a Union strategic plan for methane, and to present legislative proposals to Parliament and the Council to that effect;
Amendment 248 #
Paragraph 32 a (new)
32a. Points to the importance of assessing the potential for making economies less carbon intensive by reducing dependence on fossil fuels;
Amendment 274 #
Paragraph 35 a (new)
35a. Considers that world trade deregulation is having a significant effect in terms of increasing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, and it is necessary and urgent that this situation be properly studied and evaluated;
Amendment 280 #
Paragraph 36 a (new)
36a. Welcomes that Russia has ratified the Paris Agreement;
Amendment 283 #
Paragraph 37
37. Strongly deplores the lacklustre reaction by the Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to the unprecedented number and scale of forest fires in the Brazilian Amazon: urges the EU and its Member States to do their utmost, through international cooperation and assistance, to combat the environmental devastation of this key area in the global ecosystem;
Amendment 287 #
Paragraph 38
38. Believes, since it must give its consent to international agreements and plays a central role in the domestic implementation of the Paris Agreement as co-legislator, that it needs to be well integrated into the EU delegation; expects, therefore, to be allowedfull access to attend EU coordination meetings at the COP25 in Santiago and be guaranteed access to all preparatory documents from the moment negotiations begin;