During a meeting of the Green Deal Going Local, Mayors and Presidents of regions discussed the commitment and contribution of cities and regions to fight climate change.
- Hydrogen, synthetic bio-fuels or bio-gas can reduce CO2 emissions from the transport sector
Adrian Teban, Mayor of Cugir City and European Committee of the Regions (CoR) rapporteur on 'Towards zero emission road transport: Deploying alternative fuels infrastructure and strengthening CO2 emission performance standards' said that from a regional perspective, various technical solutions must be considered such as hydrogen, synthetic bio-fuels or bio-gas solutions which could address in the short and medium term CO2 emissions from the transport sector.
- New EU Forest Strategy needs to take into account regional diversity of forests
Markku Markkula, President of the Helsinki Region said that the new EU forest strategy must take into account the diversity of forests since Mediterranean, boreal and mountain forests differ a lot. He also emphasizes that the local level needs to be engaged in shaping the strategy and implementing policies. "The EU has a specific role in setting the objectives; the primary position on defining the frame for measures is on the national level. Implementing the measures and choosing the best means should clearly be on the local level." Markkula emphasized that sustainable forest policy is a combination of biological, social, economic and cultural aspects. "These are all crucial in our climate policy. However, we need to understand the diverse challenges in forest policy in different parts of the world."
- Awareness, Fairness, Inclusiveness, Transition, Substitution are essential for the green transition
Åsa Ågren Wikström, Member of Västerbotten County Council and CoR rapporteur on 'Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry Regulation (LULUCF) and Effort Sharing Regulation (ESR)' said that Forestry is of key importance to reach climate neutrality, biodiversity, the bio- and circular economy, and providing clean energy as well as sustainable alternative fuels for transport. LULUCF can make this possible. All sectors in the ESR need to contribute to emissions reduction.
- Impacts of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on SMEs needs to be assessed
Michael Murphy, Mayor of Clonmel Borough District said that while the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism is possibly one of the most innovative mechanisms to ensure that the environmental price of goods entering the single market is factored in, its requirements could put a heavy administrative burden on EU importers, resulting in a potential increase in costs up to 15%. He added that SMEs will be particularly affected by this burden and thus impacts should be assessed in the transition phase.
- Social consequences of the green transition on the ground must be assessed to offer solutions
Csaba Borboly, President of Harghita County Council and CoR rapporteur on 'Towards a socially fair implementation of the Green Deal' said that most of the measures needed to achieve climate goals have a specific territorial dimension, and local and regional authorities (LRAs) are thus best placed to assess the necessary policies on local level. We must focus on the social consequences of the green transition and to offer solutions. He also said: "The Social Climate Fund has to be operational as quickly as possible, that is why we propose to include it in the Structural Funds - under the shared management rule and in line with the principle of subsidiarity and multi-level governance."
- LRAs need direct funding to successfully implement energy efficiency targets
Rafał Trzaskowski, Mayor of Warsaw and CoR rapporteur on 'Amending the EED to meet the new 2030 climate targets' said "We need an ambitious Energy Efficiency Directive not only to achieve climate neutral Europe but also to fight energy poverty. Energy efficiency improvements of households and public sector buildings are key to reduce the bills, given the currently skyrocketing energy prices. We should increase energy efficiency regardless of the energy source." He called on the European Commission to grant direct funds for local and regional authorities to successfully implement energy efficiency targets.
- Local authorities committed in stimulating changes to achieve a green transition
Speaking on renewable energy, Hanna Zdanowska, Mayor of Łódź said that in implementing the Green Deal, LRAs have to show courage as this entails not so easy and convenient changes for everyone. She called for support to move forward in this direction "Increasing environmental ambitions, should be accompanied by a proportional increase in financial support dedicated to local governments, which are responsible for the implementation of the necessary solutions."
- Introducing carbon pricing in transport and building sectors should be done in a gradual way
Ricardo Rio, Mayor of Braga said that the soaring energy prices and geopolitical instability have showed that investments in energy efficiency are in dire need and the energy transition should be accelerated as much as possible to reduce dependencies and vulnerabilities. He added that LRAs have specific competencies when it comes to the building and road transport sectors and will thus be called to intervene when the increase in prices resulting from the Emission Trading System will affect consumers and households. "That is why, introducing carbon pricing transport and building sectors should be done in a gradual way, alleviating the immediate pressure on prices for transport, heating and cooling avoiding burdens especially for the most vulnerable EU territories and groups of citizens."