Achieving a Carbon Neutral Economy by 2050
Achieving a Carbon Neutral Economy by 2050
11 December 2019
The new European Green Deal plans to make the EU carbon neutral by 2050 while opening up new possibilities for development and employment. The European Commission wants to send a strong message to the world on dealing with climate change, but a number of thorny issues will need to be tackled.
Securing funding for the initiatives covered by the Green Deal will be difficult, and may be exacerbated by political splits and resistance to the overall goal from certain EU member states. The EU may also go down the wrong path of picking winners or try to play down the true cost of reaching a carbon neutral economy. Both of these strategies could backfire.
The EU should instead focus on adopting an innovation-friendly regulatory environment, harnessing the carbon-absorption elements in nature and taking an impartial approach to technologies and energy sources in the transition towards a carbon neutral economy.
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