Answer given by Ms Hedegaard on behalf of the Commission
8.1.2014
1.The ‐20% EU target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions (not only CO2) by 2020 refers to the year 1990 for the European Union as a whole. Some 45% of the emissions under this target fall under the EU Emissions Trading System[1] (EU ETS), covering large installations in industry and the energy sector, with an EU-wide cap on their emissions from 2013 onwards. The remaining 55% fall under the Effort Sharing Decision[2] (ESD), which covers sectors such as transport, buildings, agriculture and waste and sets binding annual GHG emission targets for Member States for the period 2013‐2020 for these sectors.
The year 2005 is the first year where a split of ETS and non-ETS emissions data was available, therefore both the cap under the EU ETS and the national targets under the ESD have been based on the emissions in this year.
The entire Climate and Energy package, including the ETS and the ESD, was agreed on the basis of cost-efficiency, fairness and solidarity. Thus, the 2020 national emission targets set out in the ESD have been based on Member States’ relative wealth and range from a 20% emissions reduction to a 20% increase. In the EU ETS, 88% of the allowances for auctioning are distributed to Member States on the basis of ETS emissions in the 2005-2007 period. 10% of the allowances are distributed to those Member States with lower GDP per capita and higher prospects for growth and emissions. Another 2% are distributed to nine Member States which in 2005 had achieved a reduction of at least 20% in GHG emissions compared with the reference year set by the Kyoto Protocol.
2.As indicated above, under the ESD, the base year for all Member States is 2005. For the EU ETS, 2005 is a baseline year for the European Union as a whole. No averages are used as emissions are measured in total quantity.
OJ C 228, 17/07/2014