The EU wants a new package of concrete and binding legislation to reduce EU greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20% by 2020 in place by the end of the year.

The parliamentary committees looking at the different proposals will finalise their positions over the next couple of months. We have published a series of articles over the past few months outlining the main pieces of legislation and the views of parliament's draftsmen on those proposals. Catch up on the whole climate change package here.

The EU’s climate change package spells out how the EU aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions 20% by 2020 and increase the use of renewable energy to 20% of the total, as agreed by EU leaders in March 2007.

Time is pressing. Reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), indicate that global warming requires urgent action to curb emissions of greenhouse gases, of which the EU is one of the biggest emitters. The EU also wants to firm up its goals and commitments on climate change before international negotiations for an agreement replacing the Kyoto protocol go into their final phase in 2009.

Finally, since the European Parliament has an equal say with EU ministers over this package and EP elections are looming in June 2009, all parties are eager to get the new laws approved before then. The French Presidency of the Council would like to broker an agreement on the legislation by the end of its term in December 2008.

These are the main elements of the package:

* Renewable energy production
* Capture and geological storage of carbon dioxide
* CO2 and cars
* Revision of the European emissions trading scheme
* Reduction of greenhouse gases