The European parliament has declared a global climate and environmental emergency as it urged all EU countries to commit to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
The vote came as scientists warned that the world may have already crossed a series of climate tipping points, resulting in a state of planetary emergency.
Intended to demonstrate Europe’s green credentials days before a crucial UN climate conference in Madrid, the vote also ratchets up pressure on Ursula von der Leyen, the incoming president of the European commission, who declared this week that the EU would lead the fight against the existential threat of the climate crisis.
Although passed with a comfortable majority, with 429 votes in favour, 225 votes against and 19 abstentions MEPs across the political spectrum warned against making symbolic gestures.
Environmental campaigners said the declaration was not backed by sufficient action. “Our house is on fire. The European parliament has seen the blaze, but it’s not enough to stand by and watch,” said Greenpeace’s EU climate policy adviser, Sebastian Mang, shortly before the vote.
Separately, the Climate Action Network, a coalition of 1,700 NGOS, warned that member states would have to overachieve on the EU’s existing 2030 carbon target to keep on track with the Paris climate agreement.
The EU currently aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 against 1990 levels, a target the network has described as shockingly insufficient. To meet that target declared inadequate by MEPs in the vote EU member states have until the end of the year to submit plans to Brussels outlining their energy transformation over the next decade.
An assessment of the draft plans by the Climate Action Network said there was insufficient ambition to switch to renewables, make energy savings and phase out coal.
The report highlighted that progress had been made since countries submitted their original plans in 2018. Greece, Hungary and Slovakia have since agreed to phase out coal in their power sectors by 2030. That means coal will be concentrated in five EU member states in 2030: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and Romania.
Other countries were faulted for low ambition, notably Belgium, which has not put forward any new plans on renewable energy or energy savings because of the long-running political stalemate that has resulted in a caretaker government being for nearly a year. France, Germany, and Sweden were among numerous countries criticised for not doing enough to phase out fossil fuel subsidies.
The research highlighted that climate activists in Hungary and Romania had no access to official information about changes in government’s climate and energy plans.