Environment – European Neighbourhood Monitor

France and Italy push for temporary exemption of fertilisers from EU carbon border levy

France and Italy are urging the European Union to temporarily exempt fertilisers from its carbon border levy, arguing that the measure risks further straining Europe’s agricultural sector at a time of low crop prices and high input costs. According to documents seen by Reuters, the two countries are seeking a delay or suspension of the […]

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EUDR delay seen as exposing the limits of the “Brussels effect”

Environment / ENM

The European Union’s decision to delay the implementation of its deforestation law is increasingly seen as a stark illustration of how difficult it has become for Brussels to project its regulatory power beyond its borders. The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), first proposed in 2021, was intended to prevent products linked to deforestation from entering the bloc’s

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EU governments back one-year pause and potential reopening of deforestation law

Environment / ENM

EU governments have endorsed a proposal to postpone the implementation of the bloc’s deforestation rules for an additional year and to introduce a mechanism that could allow the legislation to be revised as early as next spring, according to diplomats briefed on the talks. The decision, taken during negotiations on Wednesday, opens the door to

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The European Commission: Out of Touch with Reality and Democracy

Environment, Trade / ENM

By Pieter Cleppe, editor-in-chief, BrusselsReport.eu As the European Commission charges ahead with a new climate ambition—cutting emissions by 90% by 2040 compared to 1990 levels—it seems determined to ignore both economic warning signs and the political will of European citizens. Despite a clear electoral setback for green parties in the 2024 European Parliament elections, Brussels

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Just before leaving office, Biden sets new climate goal

Environment / ENM

In the United States, the Biden administration has announced a new climate target. The U.S. already committed to zeroing out its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The new American interim NDC now foresees to change this from 50 – 52% by 2030, based on the country’s 2005 greenhouse gas emission levels, to 61 – 66%

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EU Prepares for Trump’s Expected Exit from Paris Climate Accord

Environment / ENM

The European Union is bracing for another seismic shift in international climate policy as Donald Trump returns to the U.S. presidency, with plans to once again withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement. Trump’s previous exit from the agreement, coupled with his administration’s rollback of domestic environmental policies, disrupted global efforts to combat

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European Parliament votes to delay deforestation rules with one year

Environment / ENM

Yesterday, a majority of Members of European Parliament voted in favour of postponing the EU’s new deforestation regulation (EUDR) with one year, so it will only enter into force in January 2026. The European People’s Party, which is the biggest group in the EP, submitted a whole range of amendments, ultimately however pulling amendments that

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EU “climate tariff” CBAM increasingly under fire

Environment / ENM

Writing for EU Observer, Frances Li rails against the EU’s new carbon tariff carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM). She notes: “The EU prides itself in its progressive values, including its commitment to sustainable development. However, its incoming deforestation regulation and carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) disproportionately burden developing countries–and within them, smaller and medium sized

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UN official slams EU for using green policies to hold back developing countries

Environment, Indo-Pacific / ENM

”Rebeca Grynspan, secretary-general of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, has issued fundamental criticism at the EU’s trade policies, stating they hurt developing countries. She told the Financial Times: “Many trade rules forbid policies that can be used by developing countries. And the developed countries have more fiscal space to subsidise in the areas

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EU agency warning EU may miss its own climate targets triggers debate about policy alternatives

Environment / ENM

In a new report, the EU’s European Environment Agency (EEA) warns the EU that it is failing its climate targets, noting that the current 10-year trend is “going in the wrong direction”. The EEA takes stock annually of progress towards the 8th Environment Action Programme (8th EAP) objectives on the basis of a set of

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