“Poland's exit from the ETS = exit from the EU.” The Minister of Climate comments on Czarnek's ideas

Poland's exit from the ETS would mean Poland's exit from the European Union, emphasized Paulina Hennig-Kloska, Minister of Climate and Environment, on Monday, referring to the words of PiS candidate for Prime Minister Przemysław Czarnek. As she emphasized, citizens and the Polish government do not agree to this solution.

The European Emissions Trading System is one of the main EU mechanisms aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and combating climate change. The ETS works on the principle of emission caps and emission allowance trading.

On Saturday, during the PiS convention in Krakow, the party's candidate for prime minister, Przemysław Czarnek, said that representatives of a “strong state” should go to Brussels and declare, among other things, the EU ETS system, renewable energy sources or the Green Deal. “We don't have your energy mix, we don't have any Green Deal, we don't have any renewable energy, sr-RES. We have our coal mix, because we have our natural resources and we don't have to give you them. We have our coal,” the politician emphasized.

Hennig-Kloska was asked by journalists on Monday in Gniezno whether Poland can leave the ETS system.

– Poland's exit from the ETS means Poland's exit from the European Union. As far as I know, neither Polish women nor the government consent to this. There isn't and there won't be. Of course, European policy needs to be changed to better suit our needs. And that's exactly what we are doing, she assured the minister.

She added that, as the head of the Ministry of Environment, she has been trying to change the ETS2 directive for two years, which – as she admitted – is to affect, among others, households that heat their homes with coal.

– We want to reduce the impact of this directive on their bills and postpone (the entry of the ETS2 system – PAP) to have more time to transform these households by investing in the replacement of heat sources, e.g. Cinderellas. In the middle of this year, the European Commission is to present a legislative change that will remodel and revise ETS 2. We are waiting for this document to be included in the work on it, she declared.

On March 5, European Union countries finally approved a new climate target, which assumes a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. by 2040 compared to the 1990 level. A one-year delay in the entry into force of the ETS2 system was also approved, which provides for covering transport and construction with CO2 emission permits. Instead of 2027, this system will come into force in 2028 (PAP)

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