The French parliament has approved a National Climate Law to make travel, housing, agriculture, and industry cleaner and more energy-efficient. However, according to environmental activists, the Climate Law falls far short of significantly reducing CO2 emissions.
President Emmanuel Macron's law affects virtually the entire economy, including agriculture, but also historical buildings and the aviation and automotive industries. Sectors are given two years to reduce their emissions; afterwards, a penalty system threatens. This also applies to the use of chemical substances in agriculture and animal husbandry.
Disagreement in the Senate and Parliament, and among the many French regional agricultural interest groups and environmental organizations, led to numerous weakenings and compromises in recent months. Critics accuse Macron of agreeing to stringent climate laws at the EU level but yielding to resistance and criticism in his own country. Next year there will be presidential elections, and Macron hopes to be reelected.
A subsidy will be introduced to encourage the purchase of cleaner cars and to phase out the most polluting vehicles. There will also be subsidies for renovating energy-wasting homes and other buildings, and a ban on short domestic flights on routes that can be covered by train.
A panel of 150 citizens, convened by Macron, worked for months on recommendations for the climate law, but critics say the president weakened their proposals. The establishment of such a citizen panel was Macron’s response to the angry and violent demonstrations of the 'yellow vests'.
Last week, Macron supported a European Union plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. The French announcements align with these recent developments at the European level.
At the end of June, negotiators reached a provisional agreement on the future reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which aims to make the sector greener and more sustainable.
The European "farm to fork" strategy aims, among other things, to reduce the use of chemical pesticides, combat antibiotic resistance, develop organic farming, promote animal welfare, and combat food waste.