European Parliament Plenary Chamber

IMAGE: dgeezer.net

The European Parliament has announced that it will become the first EU institution to become 100% carbon neutral in 2016. The mission was announced by the Parliament’s Bureau (President, Vice-Presidents and Quaestors), and has been allocated some €250,000 funding. The European Parliament has simultaneously pledged to reduce its CO2 emissions and make better use of energy, water and paper.

 

Vice-President of the European Parliament Ulrike Lunacek, whose responsibilities also include the EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS), had this to say:

 

"With this step towards 100% carbon neutrality the European Parliament will play its part in limiting the impacts of climate change. Some weeks ahead of COP21 in Paris this is a great signal from inside the European Institutions showing that we are willing to live up to our goals. The EU will have to seriously raise its ambition if it is to play a positive role in making COP21 a success. In this way, Parliament is setting a good example in promoting best practice. But we will do more: in order to progress towards reaching our environmental targets Parliament will further improve the implementation of its environmental practices throughout the Parliament in key areas, such as water, paper and electricity consumption, waste recycling and awareness-raising.”

 

The EU hasn't been coy about their intentions or indeed how they intend on carrying them out. In a press release, the European Parliament announced that:

 

"Offsetting applies only in cases where carbon emissions are unavoidable or cannot be further reduced. CO2 offsetting entails buying carbon offsets to compensate for the buyer’s own CO2 emissions. Such offsets are typically achieved by providing financial support for renewable energy or efficient energy projects, which aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a global context.

 

Next to the 100% offsetting goal, Parliament has also decided on eligible offsetting projects. Projects in the African, Caribbean and Pacific states should be considered first. If no projects are available in these countries, projects in countries covered by the European Neighbourhood Policy and the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership/Union for the Mediterranean (EuroMed/UfM) should be considered next, with projects in EU accession candidate countries or EU member states also being eligible. For offsetting projects in developing countries, the globally-recognized 'Gold Standard' of quality, originally developed by the WWF and other international NGOs as a best practice standard, should be used. All projects proposed should continue to be registered under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, (UNFCCC) to ensure their legitimacy."

 

So there you have it. The European Parliament is going carbon neutral. Finally. It stands to reason that any institution which is going to be exhorting sustainability is also going to have to practice what they preach. The other added benefit is that if the European Parliament can achieve carbon neutral status on a budget of €250,000, that will send out the strongest signal to other institutions and businesses that going carbon neutral does not need to cost the earth (both literally and figuratively speaking).

 

We will, of course and as always, be following closely to see if the European Parliament will be living up to their word. In the meanwhile, we wish them every success in their bold endeavour.