Press release - April 10, 2008
Brussels, Belgium — The deceptive duo of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel could cut a climate-bashing backroom deal seriously undermining Europe’s attempts to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from cars, Greenpeace warned today. France and Germany are excluding the other 25 EU member states and the European Parliament from private negotiations designed to help their car companies escape climate commitments.
Greenpeace activists parody French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel as bride and groom on the Champs Elysée in Paris. With this parody wedding, Greenpeace is highlighting the danger that the Franco-German partnership will result in very weak European regulations. To fight climate change, the European Union must reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, especially in the transport sector.
"European car manufacturers are fighting tooth and nail to weaken the first-ever law to reduce car emissions and the leaders of France and Germany are dancing to their tune," said Franziska Achterberg, Greenpeace EU transport campaigner.
Greenpeace highlighted the danger of the Franco-German backroom deal resulting in seriously weakened EU legislation with a parody of a Sarkozy-Merkel wedding and a 'bridal cortège' of high polluting cars in Paris today.
The transport sector has increased its emissions by around 26% since 1990, with levels continuing to rise.(1) The EU is at present negotiating CO2 standards for cars with the aim of bringing them down to120g CO2/km in 2012, after the industry failed to deliver on a long-standing voluntary commitment.(2)
"This deal could allow carmakers to evade their climate responsibility until 2015 or later by allowing a phase-in of requirements and instituting ridiculously low fines. It must be stopped and any negotiation must involve all 27 EU member states," said Achterberg.
Main Greenpeace demands:
- 120g CO2/km target in 2012 and 80g CO2/km target in 2020(3)
- company burden-sharing based on vehicle size and not weight
- strong penalties of EUR 150 for every gram above the limit for each vehicle sold to force manufacturers to respect the regulation(4)
Please sign the Greenpeace e-petition on: http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/climate-change/cars/dirty-deal
Other contacts:
Franziska Achterberg, Greenpeace EU transport campaigner, +32 (0)2 2741 918, +32 (0)498 36 24 03 (mob.), 
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Mark Breddy, Greenpeace EU communications manager, +32 (0)2 2741 903, +32 (0)496 15 62 29 (mob.), 
Notes:
(1) Greenhouse gas emission trends and projections in Europe. Tracking progress towards Kyoto targets. EEA, 2007 – http://reports.eea.europa.eu/eea_report_2007_5/en.
(2) Despite a voluntary commitment to reduce CO2 emissions from new cars to 140 g/km by 2008, European car manufacturers only reached an average of 160 g/km in 2006.
(3) A postponement of requirements to 2015 would mean CO2 savings are reduced by nearly two thirds in 2020, unless a medium-term target is agreed – The Greens/European Free Alliance: Putting the brakes on climate change, October 2007 – .">http://www.greens-efa.org/cms/topics/dokbin/201/
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(4) The European Commission has assessed the average cost of compliance as being just under EUR 100 for mainstream manufacturers to reach 2012 targets. Commission impact assessment: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/co2/pdf/sec_2007_1723.pdf.