President Macron’s government is moving to consolidate the Paris climate deal despite the US withdrawal
In what is being hailed as a ‘revolution’ on France’s roads, the government said on Thursday that it plans to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars by the year 2040.
The announcement was made as part of a series of measures for the environmment.
President Emmanuel Macron’s administration wants to keep up momentum on the Paris climate agreement, in the wake of the US decision to withdraw from the deal.
His ecology minister Nicolas Hulot explained that the aim is to make France the number one green economy by making the Paris accord an opportunity for creativity, innovation and employment.
“In that spirit and putting into action what was announced by the president when the United States announced its position regarding the Paris agreement, our objective will be to become carbon neutral by 2050,” Hulot told reporters.
The green energy plan goes further.
France will halt coal-generated electricity production by 2022 and aims to cut the proportion of its power from nuclear energy to 50 percent by 2025 from over 75 percent at present.