Environmental Policies
#6Key Findings
As a key international voice on the issue of climate change, France falls into the top ranks internationally (rank 6) with regard to environmental policy. Its score in this area has improved by 1.3 points relative to 2014.
While extremely active at the international level, the government has found it difficult to reach domestic targets. It has made little progress toward its own climate-change commitments in recent years, in large part due to protests and powerful lobbying interests.
The country has a good record on carbon emissions overall, but this is largely due to strong dependence on nuclear energy. Plans to reduce the nuclear power generation share from 75% to 50% by 2025, accompanied by a strong increase in renewables, appear unlikely to be realized in full. The government is now advocating the creation of new small-scale nuclear power plants.
Water-quality goals have been undermined by the powerful agricultural lobby, and pesticide use has risen sharply in recent years. The municipal composting, recycling and waste-management sectors trail northern European counterparts. A citizen initiative has produced recommendations on reducing greenhouse-gas emissions that have been submitted to parliament.
While extremely active at the international level, the government has found it difficult to reach domestic targets. It has made little progress toward its own climate-change commitments in recent years, in large part due to protests and powerful lobbying interests.
The country has a good record on carbon emissions overall, but this is largely due to strong dependence on nuclear energy. Plans to reduce the nuclear power generation share from 75% to 50% by 2025, accompanied by a strong increase in renewables, appear unlikely to be realized in full. The government is now advocating the creation of new small-scale nuclear power plants.
Water-quality goals have been undermined by the powerful agricultural lobby, and pesticide use has risen sharply in recent years. The municipal composting, recycling and waste-management sectors trail northern European counterparts. A citizen initiative has produced recommendations on reducing greenhouse-gas emissions that have been submitted to parliament.
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How effectively does environmental policy in your country protect and preserve the sustainability of natural resources and environmental quality?
10
9
9
Environmental policy goals are ambitious and effectively implemented as well as monitored within and across most relevant policy sectors that account for the largest share of resource use and emissions.
8
7
6
7
6
Environmental policy goals are mainly ambitious and effectively implemented and are monitored within and across some of the relevant policy sectors that account for the largest share of resource use and emissions.
5
4
3
4
3
Environmental policy goals are neither particularly ambitious nor are they effectively implemented and coordinated across relevant policy sectors.
2
1
1
Environmental concerns have been largely abandoned.
In its 2016 environmental report, the OECD stated that France had significantly improved its environmental performance over the last 10 years. However, the French record with respect to environmental targets is not optimal. According to OECD indicators, France is ranked in the lower-middle group in most areas. Too often, environmental policies continue to be subordinated to sectoral policies or weakened by protest movements. While being extremely active at the international level (e.g., Cop 21 and related forums), France has been unable to reach its own targets in most of areas. This is due to lobby groups’ resistance to the full implementation of environmental policies. As an example, public financial support for agriculture is often granted without significant environmental conditions.
A (semi-official) think tank report by I4CE underlined in December 2021 that in spite of the pandemic, private and public spending in support of the ecological transition had grown by 10% (€45 billion), but that it was still insufficient to reach the targets set. An additional €13 billion and €15 billion would be necessary through 2023 simply to realize the objectives fixed by the government. The French recovery plan established in 2020 to respond to the pandemic has dedicated 30% of its resources, which overall total €30 billion, to the task of environmental transition; the investment plan launched in October 2021, called France 2030, gives a similar priority to these questions.
France’s good performance with regard to carbon emissions (sixth place within the OECD for CO2 emissions per GDP unit in 2017) can be credited to the country’s nuclear sector. A July 2015 energy transition bill set several objectives, including a reduction of nuclear power’s share in total energy production from 75% to 50% by 2025, and an increase in the share contributed by renewable energy sources to 40% from what was then a 12.5% share. However, these goals are unlikely to be met, given the complex authorization processes for renewable energy installations. The Macron government has passed laws prohibiting oil exploration on French territory (including overseas territories), ordering a closure of coal mines by 2022, and closing the Fessenheim nuclear plant beginning in 2020. However, a policy U-turn had taken place by the end of 2021. Macron has now advocated the idea of launching smaller nuclear plants, and the return to nuclear energy is supported both by the Conservatives and by public opinion, which regards this energy form as being “neutral” with regard to CO2 emissions. In the meantime, other forms of energy have not made enough progress, due to resistance by pressure groups and judicial obstacles.
The decision to raise taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel provoked the Yellow Vest riots in November and December of 2018, leading the government to withdraw this measure. This was reminiscent of a similar government retraction in 2014, when President Hollande was forced to cancel the so-called eco-tax on trucks. On 24 October 2019, France was condemned by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for being unwilling or unable to reduce NO2 levels to meet EU targets in place since 2009. In April 2019, Macron announced a new initiative, launching a “Citizen Convention for the Climate,” which assembled 150 citizens representative of the French population to address the question: “How can greenhouse-gas emissions be reduced by 40% by 2030 in a spirit of justice and equity?” The 149 proposals from that group in January 2020 have been submitted to the parliament in a slightly watered-down form. Some pesticides (e.g., Glysophate) will be banned in the future, but the government rejected an opposition request to advance the deadline, set by the European Union, in France. Macron’s initial promise to hold a referendum (adding climate preservation to Art. 1 of the constitution) was abandoned in July 2021 because the two chambers of parliament did not reach the agreement necessary to hold a popular consultation on this constitutional reform.
In the field of renewable water resources, France has long experience dating to the 1960s, and has set up water agencies to monitor the use and protection of its resources. However, the objectives set out in the Ecophyto plan (2009) to enhance water quality have not been met by 2015. French authorities have been unable to resist the agriculture lobby, which is the largest consumer of water. The use of pesticides has increased by 29% (2008 – 2014). The excess of nitrate and its negative consequences for the proliferation of some seaweeds has been felt particularly strongly in the north of Brittany, where poultry and pig manures are used as fertilizers. In spite of social pressure and judicial decisions to the contrary, the farm lobby and other economic interests have impeded the drastic measures needed.
The municipal composting, waste management and recycling sectors trail far behind counterparts in northern European countries. The situation is better with biodiversity and forests, the latter of which are experiencing a growth in surface area. A new law on biodiversity was adopted in August 2016. However, the protection of biodiversity has met resistance in metropolitan France due to many countervailing interests (agriculture, construction and transportation), and protection levels have actually been reduced according to official reports.
To summarize, France has set ambitious environmental-policy goals, but implementation of governmental decisions has often turned out to be incomplete, producing only limited impact. It remains to be seen whether the implementation of the recovery plan will be better. In its November 2021 recommendations, the OECD emphasized the need to stimulate private investment, create incentives in order to change the behavior of companies and individuals, align the price of carbon energy across sectors, and offer support to those who might be unable to bear the economic costs of the transition.
Citations:
OECD Environmental Performance Reviews: France 2016, Paris, OECD, 6 oct. 2016
L’environnement en France 2019. Rapport de synthèse
(https://ree.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/9782111570573_lenvironnementenfrance_edition2019_rapportdesynthese_v24_web_light.pdf)
OECD: Environment at a glance indicators, 19 November 2019
(https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/ac4b8b89-en/index.html?itemId=/content/publication/ac4b8b89-en)
I4CE et al.: Climat: quels investissements pour le prochain quinquennat?
https://www.i4ce.org/wp-core/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/SPECIAL_CLIMAT.pdf
A (semi-official) think tank report by I4CE underlined in December 2021 that in spite of the pandemic, private and public spending in support of the ecological transition had grown by 10% (€45 billion), but that it was still insufficient to reach the targets set. An additional €13 billion and €15 billion would be necessary through 2023 simply to realize the objectives fixed by the government. The French recovery plan established in 2020 to respond to the pandemic has dedicated 30% of its resources, which overall total €30 billion, to the task of environmental transition; the investment plan launched in October 2021, called France 2030, gives a similar priority to these questions.
France’s good performance with regard to carbon emissions (sixth place within the OECD for CO2 emissions per GDP unit in 2017) can be credited to the country’s nuclear sector. A July 2015 energy transition bill set several objectives, including a reduction of nuclear power’s share in total energy production from 75% to 50% by 2025, and an increase in the share contributed by renewable energy sources to 40% from what was then a 12.5% share. However, these goals are unlikely to be met, given the complex authorization processes for renewable energy installations. The Macron government has passed laws prohibiting oil exploration on French territory (including overseas territories), ordering a closure of coal mines by 2022, and closing the Fessenheim nuclear plant beginning in 2020. However, a policy U-turn had taken place by the end of 2021. Macron has now advocated the idea of launching smaller nuclear plants, and the return to nuclear energy is supported both by the Conservatives and by public opinion, which regards this energy form as being “neutral” with regard to CO2 emissions. In the meantime, other forms of energy have not made enough progress, due to resistance by pressure groups and judicial obstacles.
The decision to raise taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel provoked the Yellow Vest riots in November and December of 2018, leading the government to withdraw this measure. This was reminiscent of a similar government retraction in 2014, when President Hollande was forced to cancel the so-called eco-tax on trucks. On 24 October 2019, France was condemned by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for being unwilling or unable to reduce NO2 levels to meet EU targets in place since 2009. In April 2019, Macron announced a new initiative, launching a “Citizen Convention for the Climate,” which assembled 150 citizens representative of the French population to address the question: “How can greenhouse-gas emissions be reduced by 40% by 2030 in a spirit of justice and equity?” The 149 proposals from that group in January 2020 have been submitted to the parliament in a slightly watered-down form. Some pesticides (e.g., Glysophate) will be banned in the future, but the government rejected an opposition request to advance the deadline, set by the European Union, in France. Macron’s initial promise to hold a referendum (adding climate preservation to Art. 1 of the constitution) was abandoned in July 2021 because the two chambers of parliament did not reach the agreement necessary to hold a popular consultation on this constitutional reform.
In the field of renewable water resources, France has long experience dating to the 1960s, and has set up water agencies to monitor the use and protection of its resources. However, the objectives set out in the Ecophyto plan (2009) to enhance water quality have not been met by 2015. French authorities have been unable to resist the agriculture lobby, which is the largest consumer of water. The use of pesticides has increased by 29% (2008 – 2014). The excess of nitrate and its negative consequences for the proliferation of some seaweeds has been felt particularly strongly in the north of Brittany, where poultry and pig manures are used as fertilizers. In spite of social pressure and judicial decisions to the contrary, the farm lobby and other economic interests have impeded the drastic measures needed.
The municipal composting, waste management and recycling sectors trail far behind counterparts in northern European countries. The situation is better with biodiversity and forests, the latter of which are experiencing a growth in surface area. A new law on biodiversity was adopted in August 2016. However, the protection of biodiversity has met resistance in metropolitan France due to many countervailing interests (agriculture, construction and transportation), and protection levels have actually been reduced according to official reports.
To summarize, France has set ambitious environmental-policy goals, but implementation of governmental decisions has often turned out to be incomplete, producing only limited impact. It remains to be seen whether the implementation of the recovery plan will be better. In its November 2021 recommendations, the OECD emphasized the need to stimulate private investment, create incentives in order to change the behavior of companies and individuals, align the price of carbon energy across sectors, and offer support to those who might be unable to bear the economic costs of the transition.
Citations:
OECD Environmental Performance Reviews: France 2016, Paris, OECD, 6 oct. 2016
L’environnement en France 2019. Rapport de synthèse
(https://ree.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/9782111570573_lenvironnementenfrance_edition2019_rapportdesynthese_v24_web_light.pdf)
OECD: Environment at a glance indicators, 19 November 2019
(https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/ac4b8b89-en/index.html?itemId=/content/publication/ac4b8b89-en)
I4CE et al.: Climat: quels investissements pour le prochain quinquennat?
https://www.i4ce.org/wp-core/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/SPECIAL_CLIMAT.pdf
Graph View
To what extent does the government actively contribute to the design and advancement of global environmental protection regimes?
10
9
9
The government actively contributes to international efforts to design and advance global environmental protection regimes. In most cases, it demonstrates commitment to existing regimes, contributes to their being advanced and has introduced appropriate reforms.
8
7
6
7
6
The government contributes to international efforts to strengthen global environmental protection regimes. It demonstrates commitment to existing regimes and occasionally contributes to their being advanced and/or has introduced some appropriate reforms.
5
4
3
4
3
The government demonstrates commitment to existing regimes, but does not contribute to their being advanced and has not introduced appropriate reforms.
2
1
1
The government does not contribute to international efforts to strengthen global environmental protection regimes.
All French governments in recent decades have been committed to advancing environmental policies at the global level. Under former President Sarkozy, France was among the leading group of countries trying to secure an agreement on climate change mitigation at the 2009 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. In this tradition, French diplomats were particularly active in preparation for the U.N. Climate Change Conference chaired by France in December 2015. The global agreement reached at this conference was a success for French diplomacy. This commitment was supported by the entire political class and Macron has fully endorsed the policy choices made by Hollande. For instance, Macron has tried to convince U.S. President Donald Trump to remain committed to the pledge of the previous U.S. administration, and announced at the United Nations in September 2018 that France would not sign any international agreements with countries that are not part of the COP21 agreement. France has also been supportive of the Glasgow agreement reached during the COP26 negotiations, vowing that about one-third of the funds provided by the EU within the framework of the Recovery Plan will be devoted to investments or actions aiming at facilitating the ecological transition. At the same time, Macron has taken a stand regarding the necessity of further developing nuclear energy in the future in order to increase the production of green energy. The issue is very much disputed nationally and internationally, but most French political parties in fact support this option, and a slight majority of the population is also in favor of new civilian nuclear investments. On the EU front, Macron has announced that one of the priorities of the French presidency during the first semester in 2022 would be the launch of an EU carbon tax.