Berlin, 30 September 2020 - Environment Protection and Regional Development Minister Juris Pūce (AP!) will participate in the meeting of European Union (EU) Ministers for Environment in Berlin on 30 September and 1 October this year, in which Member States must agree decisively on the need to raise EU greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) the objectives for the EU to be able to meet the commitments of the Paris Agreement by the end of the year by submitting a more ambitious target offer to the UN and encouraging other countries in the world to raise their climate ambitions.
At the meeting, EU leaders will discuss major developments in environmental policy: strengthening EU leadership in climate policy and maintaining biodiversity beyond 2020, and the necessary solutions to mitigate THE impacts OF THE COVID-19 pandemic. . Ministers also need to decide at the meeting whether the existing Global Strategic Plan* for the conservation of biodiversity after 2020 includes the necessary solutions to mitigate THE impacts of THE COVID-19 pandemic and whether additional measures should be included to mitigate the risks of the pandemic in the future. The settings of the global strategic plan aim to significantly reduce the impact of human activity on biodiversity by 2030 in order to halt adverse trends and contribute to improving the situation.
Minister Juris Pūce: "The concentration of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere is at record levels and continues to rise. . Climate continues to warm and pose significant risks to citizens, the environment as a whole and the economy I. More ambitious action to tackle climate change, including by 2030, is very important. . The development of new, environmentally friendly industries that go hand in hand with changing public habits is a challenge that the European Union faces. m. The European Union is one of the most influential players in the world on climate change issues and has great political power to motivate the rest of the world to act more rapidly to achieve climate neutrality objectives. . Latvia, as a Member State of the European Union, is prepared to be part of the climate change mitigation solution: we will support the European Commission's proposal to raise the European Union's climate target for 2030 in order to ensure a balanced, realistic and cost-effective transition of the European Union to climate neutrality in 2050."
The Latvian National Development Plan for 2021-2027 provides for the development of the biodiversity protection system. . It intends to develop science-based biodiversity conservation objectives, indicators and measures to ensure a favourable conservation status of habitats and species of EU and national interest in Latvia, taking into account the economic and social interests of society and regional development needs.
Latvia supports the strengthening of EU climate leadership and advocates more ambitious climate targets and submits to the UN Secretariat of the Framework Convention on Climate Change a renewed nationally agreed contribution reflecting a more ambitious (GHG) emissions reduction target for 2030. . With this step, Latvia, as one of the parties to the Paris Agreement *, confirms its strong commitment to contribute to the EU's overall target of reducing overall GHG emissions by at least 55% by 2030. m.
At the same time, the Minister intends to emphasise the need to balance the objectives with the available financial means – it is important for Latvia to provide and provide additional EU financial resources at EU level to meet the new objectives, since the targets should be linked to the setting of the amount of funding. .
During the discussions at the informal meeting of EU Environment Ministers, the Minister intends to point out that EU legislation should focus on the GHG reduction target, while at the same time giving Member States freedom of choice to achieve this goal, as well as the freedom of Member States to determine their energy mix. . The Minister will also call for solutions to burden-sharing among EU Member States in a fair and socially responsible way, taking into account the situation of each Member State.
The national position of Latvia on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a framework for achieving climate neutrality and amending Regulation (EU) No 2018/1999 (European Climate Act) was approved at the meeting of the Cabinet on 21 May 2020. Latvia's national position on the European Commission communication “Reinforcing the ambitions of Europe's 2030 climate policy. . Investment in the future of climate neutrality for the benefit of the population” was approved at the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers on 29 September 2020.
During the event, the German Presidency promises to adhere strictly to all security and precautionary measures that are essential given the risks associated with Covid-19. . 43 out of 47 participants will participate in the meeting.
* 1 September 2020: a draft Global Strategic Plan outlining the mid-term targets for 2030 and identifying the key areas for improvement and 20 action lines to contribute to the achievement of the targets. . 15 th meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
* * In December 2015, a historic global agreement to curb climate change was adopted in Paris, France, the Paris agreement. . The aim of the Paris Agreement is to keep the global average temperature well below the 2 °C mark compared to the level of the pre-industrial era, aiming to limit the temperature rise to 1.5 °C compared to the pre-industrial line. I. The Paris Agreement was signed by 195 Parties and ratified by 185 countries and the European Union on 3 October 2019. . The Paris Agreement requires the Parties to the Paris Agreement to submit renewed nationally agreed contributions in 2020.
* * * climate neutrality is a situation where economic activity and consumption do not have a negative impact on climate. . Achieving climate neutrality is characterised by the balance of greenhouse gases (GHG), namely the reduction of all emissions and the offsetting of non-reduced emissions from plants (g. K. in forests) or underground capture and storage.
The information was prepared by:
Public Relations Department
Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development
Tel. .20200305; 67026533,
e-mail: prese@varam.gov.lv