Greenpeace critical of climate accord, coalition parties express doubt

The Belgian chapter of Greenpeace has criticised the environment ministers of the three regions and the federal government concerning an agreement on climate change. Details were leaked this week on the share each party will take of the sale of carbon dioxide licences, as well as targets for the production of renewable energy.

The ministers, Greenpeace said in a statement, “believe that climate policy is an Excel spreadsheet where figures can be shuffled about. There is no place for such amateurism at a climate summit.” Referring to the UN conference on climate change due to be held in Paris at the end of November, Greenpeace said: “We call on the ministers to stay home.”

“The approach to the biggest challenge the planet and humankind are facing deserves better than to be treated as the subject of a political game,” commented Greenpeace spokesperson Joeri Thijs.

Greenpeace is not alone in its criticism: the three governing parties in Flanders are not in agreement with the deal worked out by environment minister Joke Schauvliege (pictured) in talks with the two other regions and the federal government.

Flanders’ largest party, N-VA, is unhappy that Flanders’ share of the income from emissions licences, which govern the amount of carbon dioxide a company may produce, was cut from an initial proposal of 56% to 50%. The government of Flanders had first demanded 63%, coming down to 56% on condition that it was allowed to use more of its licences within Flanders instead of in developing countries.

The party is also critical of the decreased share of renewable energy that Wallonia must produce, from 12.5% to 11.5%. The government must approve the package on Friday or risk not being able to meet the deadline for the Paris summit.

Minister-president Geert Bourgeois (N-VA) remains hopeful. “This coalition has always been able to come to an understanding,” he said, speaking from Vancouver, Canada, where he is taking part in a trade mission. A statement from federal environment minister Marie-Christine Marghem that the figures made public are not yet finalised would have to be clarified, he said. “The goal must be to come to a balanced accord with the necessary solidarity between the various governments.”

Meanwhile, the European Commission has criticised the estimates of the capacity of the federal government to carry its share of the burden of the accord as too high. The federal share of the target should be 2%, but after talks with the regions, the government increased that to 2.75%. That includes the production of renewable energy from the hydro-electric station at Coo in Liège province, which the Commission had said cannot be counted.