EU to unveil tough climate rules, with tax on foreign firms

The European Union is unveiling new legislation to help meet its pledge to cut emissions of the gases that cause global warming by 55% by 2030

BRUSSELS -- The European Union on Wednesday is unveiling sweeping new legislation to help meet its pledge to cut emissions of the gases that cause global warming by 55% over this decade, including a controversial plan to tax foreign companies for the pollution they cause. The proposals by the European Commission, which is the EU’s executive branch, will cover everything from tougher caps on car pollution to new national limits on gases from buildings. It will see a revamp of the bloc’s emissions trading scheme under which companies pay for the gases they send into the air. The new legislation will involve around a dozen major proposals — most of them building on laws already in place to meet the EU’s old goal of a 40% cut in gas emissions by 2030, compared to 1990 levels — and must be endorsed by the 27 member countries and EU lawmakers. World leaders agreed six years ago in Paris to keep the global warming increase to below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and ideally no more than 1.5 degrees C (2.7 F) by the end of the century. Scientists say both goals will be missed by a wide margin unless drastic steps are taken to begin cutting greenhouse gas emissions.