Would you like to take a quick vacation to the Côte d’Azur? In France, this will soon no longer be possible in many cases – because of the strict climate laws.
France is writing climate protection into law – with very concrete consequences for companies and private individuals. After months of controversial debates, the French parliament sealed a comprehensive legislative package on Tuesday evening. After the Senate, the National Assembly also voted in favor of the government’s proposal. Among other things, it provides for a ban on certain domestic flights. In addition, a new offense called “Ecocide” is being created, which criminalizes willful environmental damage on a national scale.
The government of President Emmanuel Macron sees the law as an “ecological turning point”. Environmental groups and sections of the opposition, on the other hand, accuse the government of a missed opportunity.
Critics had not gone far enough in advance of the planned rules. They called for those who caused environmental damage to be punished if they acted negligently or recklessly.
France’s new climate laws – too strict or not strict enough?
But there were also voices in parliament that warned of legal uncertainties for companies. According to media reports, some right-wing MPs criticized a development as a “punitive ecology”.
The law bans short-haul flights within France if there is an alternative train connection of no more than two and a half hours. Connecting flights and international connections are excluded.
If convicted of ecocide, the perpetrators face up to ten years imprisonment and fines of up to 4.5 million euros. This punishes, for example, the willful pollution of a river or the air. The climate package also provides for bonuses when buying electric bicycles, a weekly veggie menu in canteens or a ban on advertising for fossil fuels such as gas or coal.
The 146 points of the legislative package go back to proposals of a climate citizens’ council that President Macron had convened in response to the “yellow vests” protests in 2018 and 2019. However, the government rejected some key proposals such as a climate referendum or a reduction in the speed limit on motorways from the current 130 to 110 kilometers per hour.
The law aims to help France reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. In early July, the French Supreme Administrative Court gave the state nine months to take appropriate action.
See in the video: Meteorologist Bernd Fuchs explains important explanations about various climate phenomena in RTL’s “Climate Update”. He also classifies current studies on the climate for viewers. This week: the greenhouse effect.
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