A new ranking shows how European countries meet their climate protection commitments

In the framework of the Paris Climate Agreement signed in 2015, countries committed to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to keep global temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius. After two and half years since the Paris Agreement, the environmental group Climate Action Network  (CAN) has published a ranking which shows in percentage how individual European countries meet their commitments. The results are not good for the European countries.

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In comparison with a theoretical "number one" country with a 100 percent rating, individual European countries received the following ranking: Sweden (77%), Portugal (66%), France (65%), Netherlands (58%), Luxemburg (56%), Denmark (49%), Germany (45%), Croatia (43%), Finland (42%), Lithuania (42%), Latvia (41%), Italy (41%), United Kingdom (37%), Austria (37%), Spain (35%), Belgium (35%), Slovenia (34%), Slovakia (34%), Czech Republic (33%), Romania (33%), Hungary (32%), Greece (32%), Cyprus (30%), Malta (30%), Bulgaria (26%), Estonia (24%), Ireland (21%) a Poland (16%).

Sweden came in first both because of its domestic climate action and its diplomatic action pushing for more ambitious climate policy at EU level. So far, Sweden is on track to meet its domestic climate and energy targets for 2020, and it has a high share of renewable energy in its energy mix.

Most central and eastern European countries including the Czech Republic come in low on the CAN ranking, but Poland ranks the lowest of any country. Poland is a coal-reliant country. It is the strongest member of the "V4" group whose combined votes can block climate and environment legislation in Brussel. Poland has dismantled a number of domestic climate and environment laws and has opened its historic forests to deforestation.

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Article source Deutsche Welle - Germany’s international broadcaster
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