Covid-19: will ecology be sacrificed in the name of economic recovery?

Pending a clear position from the government or Emmanuel Macron on the weight that the ecological transition will take in the economic recovery plan, economic players and environmentalists are trying to tip the scales in their direction.

The Medef and the French Association of Private Enterprises (Afep) have recently advocated putting certain future environmental standards on hold because of the coronavirus crisis, Le Canard Enchaîné revealed on Wednesday 22 April.

The letter sent by the employers' union on April 3 to the Minister for the Ecological Transition Élisabeth Borne, and published in its entirety on Thursday April 23 by the Journal du Dimanche, calls for, among other things, a "moratorium" on the implementing decrees of the law of 10 February against waste and for the circular economy.

>> Read: Leave, working time, debt reduction: post-Covid-19 austerity?

This law provides in particular for the creation of new polluter pays sectors, the prohibition for large surfaces or online platforms to destroy unsold unsold products in 2022 or the elimination of plastic containers in fast food in 2023.

In a note, Afep also aims at European regulations and claims for example to "postpone for a year" the revision of the directive on industrial CO2 emissions.

"No logic of moratorium"

Contacted by France 24, the Ministry of the Ecological Transition confirmed having received these requests, saying "to listen to the concerns of all stakeholders in this difficult period". "Adjustments to schedules are possible on a case-by-case basis to take into account the period of confinement which made it impossible to continue certain consultative or preparatory work prior to the implementation of certain measures", responds the firm. Élisabeth Borne.

Nevertheless, "there is no logic of moratorium, there is no questioning of the objectives and ecological measures of the government, that they are envisaged in the law energy climate, the law of orientation of mobilities or the circular economy law, "said the ministry.

>> Read: Covid-19: the issue of inequality exacerbated by the health crisis

Élisabeth Borne is one of the seventeen European Environment Ministers who have signed a call for the recovery plans in the European Union to take into account environmental and climate issues. "We must resist the temptation of short-term solutions in response to the current crisis that risk locking the EU into a fossil fuel economy for decades," said the text published on climatechangenews.com. .

But beyond the great declarations of principle, the first concrete signs sent by the government do not seem favorable to a "world after" very different from the "world before" the health crisis.

As part of the amending finance bill, on April 18, MEPs voted for € 20 billion in aid to recapitalize a certain number of so-called strategic companies, including French industrial giants in the aeronautical sectors. and automotive such as Airbus, Air France or Renault.

"A defeat of the politics and the speech of Emmanuel Macron"

For Greenpeace France, Friends of the Earth and Oxfam France, this aid "is like a blank check to the major polluters in the air, automobile and oil sectors". These three NGOs deplore the fact that the financial aid offered by the State is not conditional on a transformation plan compatible with the objectives set by the Paris Agreement, obliging them in particular to "drastically reduce their greenhouse gas emissions ".

"It is a defeat of politics, democracy and the word of Emmanuel Macron, who claims to 'transform capitalism' and that the day after will not look like the day before," laments Clément Sénéchal, of Greenpeace France, in a press release.

>> Read: Covid-19: how the Labor Code was unraveled to boost the economy

The government defends itself by stressing that an amendment proposed by the deputy LREM Bérangère Abba and aiming "an ambitious environmental policy", in the words of the Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire, was adopted. It calls on businesses assisted by the State "to integrate social, societal and environmental responsibility objectives into their strategy, in particular with regard to the fight against climate change and compliance with the Paris Agreement".

We will not allow large strategic companies to be bought up by foreign players. But it will not be a blank check: these companies will eventually have to regain competitiveness and be fully committed to a low-carbon economy. # COVID19 pic.twitter.com/HNRjPf7s3R

"The problem with this amendment is that it brings nothing more than what already exists. There is no additional commitment, no additional constraint and no compensation requested," said MP Matthieu Orphelin, contacted. by France 24.

The High Climate Council calls for "a green recovery, not a gray one"

This former member of the majority and ex-spokesperson for the Nicolas Hulot Foundation proposed a binding amendment. Rejected, he asked that "any equity support for large companies be conditional on the implementation, within twelve months of obtaining it, of an internal strategy to reduce their ecological footprint".

Lamentable rejection by the government and the majority of our amendment asking for #climat counterparties from large companies receiving the € 20 billion in state holdings. Replaced by a simple #greenwashing report from the govt. Very bad signal for # lemonded après pic.twitter.com/pJL4pYUMvV

"Unlike the adopted amendment, we asked companies for real compensation in the medium term, with a clear action plan and commitments, explains Matthieu Orphelin. And if this plan were not applied, the companies would have been held to repay the financial assistance. It is very different from what has been adopted. We can only note the too great difference existing between the declarations made by Bruno Le Maire and the reality of the text. "

>> To read: Citizen proposals for a "world after" Covid-19 more respectful for the climate

An opinion seems it shared by the High Council for the Climate (HCC) which published, Tuesday, April 21, a report on the Covid-19 crisis containing 18 recommendations so that "the recovery is green, not gray".

An independent body created in 2018 by Emmanuel Macron to assess public policies to combat global warming, the HCC warns the executive that the same error would not be reproduced as in 2008, when the recovery plan had favored polluting activities. It recommends in particular, by taking almost word for word the amendment of Matthieu Orphelin, that budgetary aid and tax incentives for communities and businesses be "clearly subordinated to the explicit adoption of investment plans and prospects compatible with the low-carbon trajectory. "

The amending finance bill is now before the Senate. An amendment using the same terms as the HCC and that the amendment proposed by Matthieu Orphelin was rejected there the night of Wednesday 22 to Thursday 23 April.

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