EU says it will probably miss greenhouse gas reduction target

The European Union (EU) said in a report on Wednesday that it will probably miss its target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

The European Environment Agency said that the goal of cutting emissions by 40 percent of 1990 levels by 2030 would likely not be achieved. But it said the EU is on track to see 30 percent reductions within the next decade.

Some activists have pushed for a 55 percent reduction by 2030 in an effort to get to net-zero emissions by 2050.

“Harmful emissions from transport and agriculture have also risen, and production and consumption of hazardous chemicals have remained stable,” the report said. “The outlook to 2030 suggests that the current rate of progress will not be sufficient to meet 2030 and 2050 climate and energy targets.”

The report also said European countries are at a “tipping point” to protect the environment and combat climate change. The agency said that “there is still a chance to meet the longer-term goals and objectives for 2030 and 2050” if nations put more effort on resolving controversial issues like fossil fuel subsidies, The Associated Press noted. 

This report was released as 200 countries meet in Madrid over the next two weeks for United Nations climate discussions. The European Green Deal, a long-term plan to combat climate change, is scheduled to be presented by the EU’s new executive commission next week at the conference, according to the news service. 

The European Parliament declared a “climate emergency” last week, but activists are still pushing the EU to make efforts to meet the goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius in the next century.

“Citizens want them to act now, and not in 30 years,” Wendel Trio, the director of Climate Action Network Europe, told the AP.