What does the Renewal Wave Strategy address? What proportion of greenhouse gas emissions are generated by energy production and use? We explain the five European Green Deal questions asked in our quiz.
In which year was the Paris Agreement signed?
The correct answer to the question about the date of signing the Paris Agreement was given by 63 per cent of the respondents. This international agreement, which is today one of the basic points for the development of the European Green Deal, was signed in 2015. A key commitment of this agreement is to limit global warming to less than 2°C above pre-industrial average temperatures and to aim for no more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
To achieve the objectives of the Covenant, the signatory States undertake to set GHG reduction targets voluntarily and to revise them every 5 years, on the understanding, however, that the reduction levels can only be increased.
What is climate neutrality?
Even more participants in the survey (85 per cent) know that climate neutrality is a comprehensive effort to zero balance greenhouse gas emissions and removals.
More specifically, it is the maximum reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the offsetting of any remaining emissions to achieve a net-zero emissions balance or a balance between CO2 emissions and its absorption from the atmosphere. The largest natural sinks of CO2 are ecosystems (soil, forests and oceans).
For example, global CO2 emissions are estimated to be 29 gigatons in 2019, while natural sinks remove between 9.5 and 11 gigatons from the atmosphere annually. Carbon sequestration (CCS), a process that captures carbon dioxide from emission sources and stores it, can also be used for this purpose. Another element is offsetting measures, which typically include support for climate projects such as investments in renewable energy or energy efficiency and the European Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
At what level are greenhouse gas emissions generated by energy production and use?
More than half of respondents (58 per cent) correctly indicated that more than 75% of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU come from energy production and use. The European Green Deal sees the energy industry turning to renewable energy. This requires a move away from coal and the decarbonisation of gas and increased support for research into low-carbon gas technologies.
In July 2020, the European Commission adopted EU strategies for the integration of the energy system and hydrogen. Hydrogen can be a source of energy in sectors that are not suitable for electrification and enable energy storage to offset variable renewable energy flows.
What does the Renewal Wave Strategy address?
It is estimated that buildings consume about 40 per cent of total energy consumption. At the same time, the annual building renovation rate is very low (from 0.4 to 1.2 per cent).
In October 2020, the European Commission published its Strategy for a wave of renovations to improve the energy performance of buildings. The strategy will prioritise three areas of action: decarbonising heating and cooling, tackling fuel poverty and the worst-performing buildings, and – as 56% of those surveyed knew – renovating public buildings such as schools, hospitals and administrative buildings.
320 respondents took part in the PAP’s online survey on the European Green Deal, which ended on 18 August.