L 111/6
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
26.4.2023
(23)
The Union’s climate action should make use of the latest science.
The advice of the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change, established under Article 10a of Regulation (EC) No 401/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council (16), should therefore be considered in the context of Regulation (EU) 2018/842.
(24)
In view of the introduction of a strengthened compliance regime in Regulation (EU) 2018/841 as of 2026, it is appropriate to abolish the deduction of the greenhouse gas emissions generated by each Member State in the period from 2026 to 2030 in the LULUCF sector in excess of its removals.
Article 9(2) of Regulation (EU) 2018/842 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(25)
It is appropriate that the review of Regulation (EU) 2018/842 in 2024 take account of the Union’s greenhouse gas emission reduction targets under Regulation (EU) 2021/1119, the Union’s commitment to the objectives of the Paris Agreement and any relevant commitments resulting from the Conferences of the Parties to the UNFCCC.
Moreover, that review should include a reduction pathway for greenhouse gas emissions that is compatible with the binding objective of climate neutrality in the Union by 2050 under Regulation (EU) 2021/1119.
(26)
Non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions, such as methane, nitrous oxide and fluorinated gases, account for over 20 % of the Union’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions are covered by Regulation (EU) 2018/842 and therefore will necessarily be part of the measures that Member States will put in place in order to comply with their increased 2030 greenhouse gas emission reduction targets under this Regulation.
By 30 June 2023, Member States are to submit a draft update of their integrated national energy and climate plans to the Commission.
The Commission will issue guidance in that respect, including to encourage Member States to set out targets and policies to reduce methane emissions.
Likewise, Member States are to assess whether their strategic plans under the common agricultural policy should be revised to reflect the increased ambition in Regulation (EU) 2018/842 introduced by the amendments thereto through this Regulation.
The Commission will include information on the results obtained by the combination of Union and national efforts in relation to non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions in the annual reports under Article 29(5) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999.
The Commission is also to assess draft integrated national energy and climate plans and can issue recommendations to Member States that do not make sufficient progress.
The Commission will, in the context of the review of Regulation (EU) 2018/841, assess the current trends and future projections of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture as well as regulatory options to ensure their consistency with the objective of achieving long-term greenhouse gas emission reductions in all sectors of the economy in accordance with the Union’s climate-neutrality objective and the Union’s intermediary climate targets set out in Regulation (EU) 2021/1119.
When reviewing Regulation (EU) 2018/842, the Commission will assess how all sectors covered by that Regulation contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, including in particular the reduction achieved as regards non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions, also in sectors other than agriculture.
(27)
Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely to adjust, in light of Regulation (EU) 2021/1119, the obligations of Member States with respect to their minimum contributions for the period from 2021 to 2030 to fulfilling the Union’s target of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and to contribute to achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of their scale and effects, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union.
In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.
(28)
Regulations (EU) 2018/842 and (EU) 2018/1999 should therefore be amended accordingly,
(16) Regulation (EC) No 401/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the European Environment Agency and the European Environment Information and Observation Network (OJ L 126, 21.5.2009, p. 13).