As reported by Lusa, the environmental association released the results of the new report prepared within the scope of the European project “LIFE Together 1.5” in partnership with Zero.
The study showed that adopting a new trajectory compatible with the Paris Agreement, which includes not allowing global warming to exceed 1.5ºC, could save the European Union approximately €1 billion by 2030, the equivalent of around four times the Portuguese GDP (Gross Domestic Product).
The same study referred to “a dangerous gap between this initiative and the trajectory in which public policies are placing the EU”, stressing this should be at the center of the political debate in this year’s European elections.
Zero and its partner organisations consider protecting “citizens and the planet from the devastating impacts of climate change is not just a moral duty, but a pragmatic choice”.
The report quantified the benefits in terms of health, employment, cost of living, well-being, energy security and resources provided by climate action aligned with the 1.5ºC trajectory, including a reduction in the EU emissions of at least 65 percent by 2023, compared to the current target of 55 to 57 percent.
As claimed by Zero, the benefits outweigh the costs, who presented an economic argument in favour of a comprehensive transition.
The reduction of emissions in Portugal, aligned with the 1.5ºC trajectory, could bring more than €16 billion in economic benefit to the country by 2030 and help prevent more than 1,300 premature deaths every year.
“In Portugal, a critical sector has increased its emissions, which is in the opposite direction to the targets established in national plans, representing a greater percentage of national emissions every year, transportation”, noted the environmental association, recalling that the transport sector was responsible for almost a third of greenhouse gas emissions in the country in 2021, which significantly impacted air quality, noise and public health.
In accordance with the environmental association, although the objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions throughout the economy is not yet aligned with 1.5ºC Paris Agreement and there are other sectors with emissions that also require special attention, given the percentage of the transport sector, it is a priority to gather a set of effective measures and put them into practice in this sector.
Zero discussed the need to increase climate ambition in Europe, including a new emissions reduction target for 2040, at a meeting with member states’ environment ministers in Brussels.
The association also appealed to the Portuguese minister, Duarte Cordeiro, to prioritise “truly progressive climate action, in alignment with science, economics and social impacts”.
Source: The Portugal News