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Evropská komise: Zahajovací projev předsedkyně von der Leyen s kanadským premiérem Trudeauem k cenám uhlíku
24. září 2024 | Evropská komise
Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Justin, It is a pleasure to host this event with you today. You said climate change is real – yes, and it can be deadly. And we know that climate change is basically greenhouse gas emission, or CO2, and this is why we are discussing to put a price on carbon. Because climate and nature cannot pay this price anymore. I am very glad that we are joining forces to give carbon pricing the push it deserves, and to discuss with industry how climate ambition and industrial innovation go hand in hand. Because only with industry can we build a prosperous future on a liveable planet.
This is what we are working for in the European Union. In the past year, we have engaged in a series of Clean Transition Roundtables with different sectors of our economy. And we all are very clear that we want to be climate neutral by 2050. We discussed how decarbonisation and competitiveness can go hand in hand. So what is it that you need to reach that goal of climate neutrality? Based on this dialogue, I will put forward a new Clean Industrial Deal to complement the European Green Deal. Such a ‘Clean Transition Dialogue', I think, is also needed at global level. Therefore, I want to thank the CEOs from different continents for joining us today. I want to focus today in particular on carbon pricing. First of all, how it works in Europe; secondly, why it should be part of our global agenda; and the third element is food for thoughts, how we can further extend it to ‘nature credits'.
Let me start with how it works in Europe. By now, carbon pricing is well-established in the European Union. It is almost 20 years since we first put a price on carbon with the so-called Emissions Trading System. Let me give you a few figures on the success of this system. Since then, we reduced emissions in the sectors it covers by 50% while our economy kept growing. We could prove that carbon pricing is a market-based instrument that works to decrease emissions and increase GDP.
Carbon pricing also of course generates revenues. Over EUR 200 billion were generated since we introduced the Emissions Trading System. 100% of these revenues, so all these revenues, are invested in the clean transition, so in climate action and in research and development of new technologies and innovations. For example, through our European Innovation Fund or the European Hydrogen Bank, we invest in ground-breaking clean technologies, for example, carbon capture and use of CO2 but also in renewables and low-carbon fuels. Now this is the European level, and national governments can also spend their revenues on the same goals, or they can use the revenues to support citizens to adapt to the clean transition. Just as you explained Justin, it has to be fair, and we should not leave anybody behind. So, carbon pricing transforms pollution into innovation. It sends a very clear message to the business world: If you pollute, you pay. But if you go clean, it pays off. And through our Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, we ensure that if you innovate, you can also compete on a level playing field. So, we prevent carbon leakage from Europe, and encourage cleaner industrial production globally.
This brings me to my second point: the global dimension. Just imagine if more countries put a price on carbon, we could cut emissions worldwide, while generating an enormous amount of revenues for the clean transition that we could reinvest in a social climate fund or in innovation and R&D. That is the main reason why the European Union has joined Canada's Global Carbon Pricing Challenge. We are assisting countries who want to develop carbon pricing. We are working in a spirit of partnership with other countries. This all builds on 35 new agreements that we have concluded in the past five years in this dialogue on clean tech, hydrogen and critical raw materials.
My final point: what works for climate should also work for nature. For generations, humanity has only rewarded the plundering of our natural environment. You can get rich by taking fossil fuels out of the ground – but you will certainly not get rich by putting carbon back into the ground. You can make good money by razing a forest to the ground, but not by planting a new one and letting it grow old. And we know that climate change, the loss of diversity and the loss of nature are intertwined. So we should reward those actors who provide ‘ecosystem services' and create a market for restoring our planet.
With the right standards, and the active engagement of our companies, I am deeply convinced, it can work. So whether you call it ‘carbon credits' or ‘nature credits', it is time to put a price on pollution, to put a premium on clean innovation and nature restoration, and scale up this rising market. Let us work together with these new business models, that are good for the planet and for our prosperity.
Thank you for your attention.
This is what we are working for in the European Union. In the past year, we have engaged in a series of Clean Transition Roundtables with different sectors of our economy. And we all are very clear that we want to be climate neutral by 2050. We discussed how decarbonisation and competitiveness can go hand in hand. So what is it that you need to reach that goal of climate neutrality? Based on this dialogue, I will put forward a new Clean Industrial Deal to complement the European Green Deal. Such a ‘Clean Transition Dialogue', I think, is also needed at global level. Therefore, I want to thank the CEOs from different continents for joining us today. I want to focus today in particular on carbon pricing. First of all, how it works in Europe; secondly, why it should be part of our global agenda; and the third element is food for thoughts, how we can further extend it to ‘nature credits'.
Let me start with how it works in Europe. By now, carbon pricing is well-established in the European Union. It is almost 20 years since we first put a price on carbon with the so-called Emissions Trading System. Let me give you a few figures on the success of this system. Since then, we reduced emissions in the sectors it covers by 50% while our economy kept growing. We could prove that carbon pricing is a market-based instrument that works to decrease emissions and increase GDP.
Carbon pricing also of course generates revenues. Over EUR 200 billion were generated since we introduced the Emissions Trading System. 100% of these revenues, so all these revenues, are invested in the clean transition, so in climate action and in research and development of new technologies and innovations. For example, through our European Innovation Fund or the European Hydrogen Bank, we invest in ground-breaking clean technologies, for example, carbon capture and use of CO2 but also in renewables and low-carbon fuels. Now this is the European level, and national governments can also spend their revenues on the same goals, or they can use the revenues to support citizens to adapt to the clean transition. Just as you explained Justin, it has to be fair, and we should not leave anybody behind. So, carbon pricing transforms pollution into innovation. It sends a very clear message to the business world: If you pollute, you pay. But if you go clean, it pays off. And through our Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, we ensure that if you innovate, you can also compete on a level playing field. So, we prevent carbon leakage from Europe, and encourage cleaner industrial production globally.
This brings me to my second point: the global dimension. Just imagine if more countries put a price on carbon, we could cut emissions worldwide, while generating an enormous amount of revenues for the clean transition that we could reinvest in a social climate fund or in innovation and R&D. That is the main reason why the European Union has joined Canada's Global Carbon Pricing Challenge. We are assisting countries who want to develop carbon pricing. We are working in a spirit of partnership with other countries. This all builds on 35 new agreements that we have concluded in the past five years in this dialogue on clean tech, hydrogen and critical raw materials.
My final point: what works for climate should also work for nature. For generations, humanity has only rewarded the plundering of our natural environment. You can get rich by taking fossil fuels out of the ground – but you will certainly not get rich by putting carbon back into the ground. You can make good money by razing a forest to the ground, but not by planting a new one and letting it grow old. And we know that climate change, the loss of diversity and the loss of nature are intertwined. So we should reward those actors who provide ‘ecosystem services' and create a market for restoring our planet.
With the right standards, and the active engagement of our companies, I am deeply convinced, it can work. So whether you call it ‘carbon credits' or ‘nature credits', it is time to put a price on pollution, to put a premium on clean innovation and nature restoration, and scale up this rising market. Let us work together with these new business models, that are good for the planet and for our prosperity.
Thank you for your attention.
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