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EU environment ministers back proposal to reform EU ETS

Xinhua, October 27, 2015 Adjust font size:

The European Union (EU) environment ministers welcomed the European Commission's proposal to reform EU's emissions trading system (EU ETS) after the environment council meeting held on Monday.

The environment ministers debated the review of the EU ETS at the meeting, the main tool of the EU's climate policy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The ministers highlighted that "the reform is an important step in the legislative implementation of the goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030," compared to 1990 levels.

They also stressed that EU member states' contributions would serve as an orientation for the future work on the proposal.

Besides, the ministers exchanged their views on how to ensure that the environmental dimension played a full role in the European Semester process, highlighting the need to phase out environmentally-harmful subsidies.

"We need strong, efficient and coherent policies in order to deliver on our goals. In this sense, it is really important to tackle harmful subsidies and make sure the EU ETS delivers and play its role in achieving the EU's ambitious climate goals," said Carole Dieschbourg, Luxembourg Minister for Environment and president of the environment council. Endit