2012-1-6   Source: EEB

The European Commission’s newly published Energy Roadmap 2050 is the first litmus test for Europe to show it is willing to back up its rhetoric at the Durban climate talks with action at home, says the EEB. The green group welcomed the Roadmap’s emphasis on energy savings but argued this needs to be followed up with more commitment for action straight away.

“We welcome this long-term vision and hope it will lead the EU to finally match its rhetoric on saving energy with effective action”, said EEB’s Agathe Ernoult.

The green group nonetheless criticized the fact that the Roadmap assumes the 20% energy saving target by 2020 will not be met, making it even more essential that legally binding targets will be agreed under the Energy Efficiency Directive.

According to the Commission’s Energy Efficiency Plan released in March this year, meeting the 20% reduction target by 2020 could create up to 2 million local jobs and could save Europe 200 billion Euros per year on fuel bills.

The EEB also called on the Commission to stop dragging its heels on the adoption of ambitious measures under the Ecodesign Directive, which could trigger huge energy savings.

In addition to energy savings legislation, the EEB says economic instruments also need to be brought in line with Europe’s energy reduction and climate ambitions. This needs to be done by revising the fiscal rules under the Energy Tax Directive and with a functioning Emission Trading Scheme.

“Delivering on our energy saving targets now will increase the value of our buildings and decrease the cost of meeting our energy needs. It will ensure Europe is on the right path towards a secure future, as opposed to locking ourselves into costly investments and disputable energy sources such as nuclear”, continued Ernoult.

The EEB warned however that relying on large quantities of biomass in the future energy mix, as the Roadmap does, would have devastating consequences for the world’s forests. It pointed out that only a few months ago, the European Environment Agency’s scientific board calculated that meeting 20 to 50% of the world’s energy demand through biomass would require a doubling or tripling of the current global harvest of plant materials