(Bloomberg) -- The Netherlands’ ability to reach the European Union’s binding target of significantly reducing emissions appears out of reach with no decisive government policy, a state agency has warned.
Despite the 2030 climate goal to reduce emissions by at least 55% compared to 1990 levels, greenhouse gas emissions in the Netherlands are estimated to fall between 44% and 52%, according to a report published by the country’s environmental assessment agency.
The Dutch government agency also attributed the slower pace in curbing emissions to setbacks in implementation, such as delays in offshore wind farms and stagnation in the production of green hydrogen. “Political choices in the past year also ensured less expected emission reduction,” the agency said in its annual climate and energy outlook on Thursday.
The new cabinet led by far-right politician Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party has also thrown Dutch climate ambitions into limbo. Wilders’ election manifesto included proposals to stop reducing carbon dioxide emissions and put key climate agreements “through the shredder.” The previous government warned in October 2023 that “rapid and ambitious” implementation of decarbonization plans was still crucial to achieving that aim.
The agency said abolishing an incentive for solar panels is among the recent government policies that will impede progress toward the target. The program currently credits owners for the electricity they feed back to the grid.
The European Union has been aggressively pushing toward a green transition with the aim of becoming the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. The bloc’s climate chief Wopke Hoekstra recently pitched a plan for a 90% net emissions cut by 2040 in order to achieve its so-called Green Deal.
Yet, the EU is facing pressure to tone down some of its rules as member states lag behind in implementation amid rising costs. The bloc this month postponed a law to tackle global deforestation.
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