Editor's note

The annual climate conference, known as the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), takes place in Paris, France. The 21^st session of the Conference of the Parties and the 11^th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol is held from 30 November to 11 December 2015.

Ambitious goals with necessary measures

Climate change is a threat multiplier that impedes the global economy, fuels existing instabilities and hits the most vulnerable disproportionately. The Paris conference offers a unique opportunity for global and national leaders to steer the world in a new direction.

During COP-21, the EU leaders are focusing on three main points: the importance of the Paris agreement; resolving existing problems among the states on the road to COP-21 agreement, and the “binding contents” of a possibly successful deal.

The EU regards ambitious action to prepare for and respond to the effects of climate change to be a central part of a balanced agreement. Both emissions reductions and adaptation will be essential to manage and reduce the risk of adverse impacts of climate change, including addressing the risk of loss and damage associated with the impacts of climate change.

The European Commission has underlined the crucial importance of reaching a fair, ambitious and legally binding global climate deal at the COP-21 summit. The EU leaders will be working to achieve a comprehensive, durable and dynamic agreement that will accelerate the global shift to low-carbon, climate-resilient economies. This will not only help curb climate change and increase societies' efforts to adapt to its impacts, but also underpin long-term economic growth and sustainable development in the EU member states and globally.

See: http://ec.europa.eu/clima/events/articles/0107_en.htm

Financing “climate deal”

The EU remains committed to delivering its share towards achieving the developed countries' joint goal of mobilising $ 100 billion per year by 2020 for climate action in developing countries. A recent report by the OECD and Climate Policy Initiative showed that $ 62 billion was mobilised in 2014, putting developed countries well on track to $100 billion goal. The EU has been the major contributor to this funding.

On 10 November, EU finance ministers confirmed (IP/15/6045) that the EU and its member states provided € 14.5 billion in public climate finance (in grants and loans) in 2014. This figure constitutes a significant increase compared to previous years. At least € 14 billion, an average of € 2 billion per year of public grants from the EU budget, will support activities in developing countries between 2014 and 2020.

The Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the European Commission will be jointly responsible for negotiating a deal on behalf of the EU member states in Paris.

COP-21 effect for the Baltic States

Climate change issues are of great concern to people, governments and businesses both for the EU and the Baltic States. The latter are part of the EU’s decision to reduce green-house emissions by 40 per cent (in relation to 1990s emissions), to increase energy efficiency by 27 per cent and reach the share of renewables in the energy mix by 27 per cent. These aims for 2030 were agreed by the EU member states already at the end of 2014.  

But for the COP-21 agreement to be a success, the Baltic States have to make their “home work”.

Here are some examples. Let’s take CO2 emissions: according to the European Environment Agency, sources of greenhouse gas emissions in 2013 were divided in the following way: energy supply 31, 8%, transport 19,8%, industry 19,3%, households and commercial buildings 15,7%, agriculture 9,8% and waste and etc. 3,5%.

The category ‘households and commercial buildings’ shows emissions from fuel used directly but not from the use of electricity and heat produced by the power sector. See: COP-21 webpage. 

These figures give a general perspective picture for the Baltic States’ climate policy. Most promising steps could be in transport, households and commercial buildings. It’s amazing that still in most houses in Latvian capital (and so is in most cities in the Baltics) the thermo-regulatory devises for heating are not used. The devises are not at all expensive; it needs just a political decision. On thy way to it stands energy monopoly: as the result, both much heat is wasted and in the mean time - tremendous green gas emissions!!  

Another example, about 70% of CO2 emissions come from towns and cities; according to Eurostat, the EU statistical office (see the flagship publication "People in the EU: who are we and how do we live?" of November 2015) more than half the population lives in the cities.

It could be a great impetus for better climate if the city councils in the Baltics would take an initiative to turn their cities into “green zones” with fewer cars and more bicycles. It needs a political decision, but human health is well worth it.

The examples are numerous: the need is to turn COP-21 agenda into the member states’s climate policies.