How the Czech Republic and Poland are putting the EU’s climate strategy at risk

Central Europe now poses a serious obstacle to the realisation of the EU’s emissions reduction target to reduce emissions by 55 per cent by 2030, writes William Nattrass

Smoke billows from the chimneys of Belchatow Power Station, Europe’s biggest coal-fired power plant in Poland (REUTERS)

Data from the European Environment Agency makes damning reading for the Czech Republic.

The country is the EU’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases per capita. And while the top two greenhouse gas guzzlers, Luxembourg and Ireland, are reducing their carbon footprints, Czech emissions are actually increasing.

The poor performance of the Czech Republic is part of a wider problem with central and eastern European countries whose lack of action in phasing out fossil fuels is leading to concerns about the EU’s ability to meet its own climate targets.