Poland is the only EU nation that has yet to commit to the bloc’s target of driving down net emissions of greenhouse gases to zero by 2050, the centre piece of the European Commission’s Green Deal.
The EU executive proposed laws to achieve the net zero goal this month but, since then, the rapidly spreading coronavirus has prompted sweeping measures across the bloc that have upended businesses and hammered the economic outlook.
“As a consequence of this crisis our economies will be weaker, companies will not have enough funds to invest, completion of some important energy projects may be delayed or even suspended,” Poland’s climate ministry told Reuters.
“These are real problems that we will be facing soon and achievement of our climate goals will be even more difficult because of them,” it said in a written response to questions.
Poland has already said the EU should scrap its emissions trading scheme or exempt Poland from the scheme.
Some diplomats in Brussels have signalled the need to rethink climate plans because of the economic turmoil.
“We simply don’t have the money to do everything,” an EU diplomat said, referring to the risk that the bloc’s Green Deal was at risk because of the economic impact of the virus.
Poland, which employs roughly half of the 237,000 people who work in the coal industry across the EU, could face a big bill from efforts to decarbonise, European Commission data indicates.
The bloc has offered to set aside €7.5 billion from its next long-term budget to help emissions-intensive regions make the shift, with Poland offered the biggest share.
