Belarus interested in EU’s experience of adapting to climate change

Belarus needs its own document similar to the European Union strategy known as "20-20-20", Igor Rogozin, the head of the hydro-meteorological department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Protection of Belarus, said at the Clima East presentation seminar in Minsk on 10-11 October, BelTA learned.

The EU strategy "20-20-20" suggests achieving significant improvements in the area of sustainable energy by 2020: reducing carbon emissions by 20%, increasing the share of alternative energy up to 20% and increasing energy efficiency by 20%. “Such a program is needed in Belarus and we hope that with the help of the Clima East project we will be able to carry out the research and make proposals,” said Igor Rogozin.

According to him, the strategy for Belarus could be "20-20-10". By 2020 Belarus could increase the share of alternative energy by 20%, reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% and increase energy efficiency by 10%. “These parameters can be different. Yet they should be scientifically justified and economically viable and aimed at promoting green technologies in the real production sector,” added Igor Rogozin.

To adjust agriculture, forestry and wetlands to the climate change is equally important for Belarus. “We know that in April 2013 the European Union adopted a directive concerning the adaptation to the climate change. Our country also needs the document of such a level, and without the assistance of EU experts it would be difficult for us to develop such an instrument,” Igor Rogozin noted.

The EU directive on trade in quotas for greenhouse gases emissions is very interesting for Belarus as well. But the country is still at the initial stage of selecting the tools for regulating greenhouse gas emissions debating between fiscal, market or regulatory methods. First, it is necessary to define the top 100 large enterprises with worst greenhouse gas emissions, to identify the emission reduction potential at these enterprises and study the costs of such cuts. And here Belarus will not do without the help of Clima East as well, according to the Ministry.

Belarus needs to improve the normative-legal and normative-technical acts on the climate observations, international exchange of information, climate support and maintenance of the government bodies concerned, organizations and population of the country on the principles and approaches developed by the European Union. “Some work has already been done in Belarus, but we would like to get acquainted with the European experience in this area, and approach closer to the instruments that operate at the technical level in the EU,” Igor Rogozin said.

Belarus has made great strides in formulating the state policy in the field of climate change. The country had acceded to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, has consistently and systematically taken steps towards the implementation of international obligations in this area. Belarus regularly implements national programs of measures to mitigate the impact of the climate change. Measures for reducing greenhouse gas emissions are laid down in relevant industry economic programs. However, closer international cooperation in the field of reducing the impact of the climate change would help Belarus to go through those stages that other countries already passed much faster.

The environmental project of the European Union "Clima East. Support of the efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change in the countries of the region of the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) and Russia” is running in Belarus in 2013-2016.