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CLIMATE

Swedish government unveils climate action plan – but is it enough to reach ambitious goals?

The Swedish government has for the first time presented a climate action plan which covers all policy areas.

Swedish government unveils climate action plan - but is it enough to reach ambitious goals?
Climate Minister Isabella Lövin presenting the 132-point plan. Photo: Janerik Henriksson / TT

In the 132-point plan, which was put together by the Social Democrat-Green government and supported by the Centre and Liberal parties, measures include a focus on electrified vehicles, by offering free parking for cars with low emissions and more charging points for electric cars.

But even according to Climate Minister Isabella Lövin, the proposed measures won't be enough to reach the climate goals Sweden has set itself for 2045. 

“It is, to me, by far the most ambitious and comprehensive plan of action developed for an entire country,” she told a press conference.

One crucial part of the plan is that climate goals would be integrated into all relevant policy areas, and Lövin stressed that the Climate Minister alone cannot ensure that targets are reached, but that work is needed from the whole government and different parts of society.

This means that the potential climate impact of any new policy will be looked into before that policy is adopted.

Some of the more specific points in the plan include goals for the aviation and shipping industries, an investigation into how public procurement can be used to reach emissions goals, and new climate-linked requirements for buildings.

The government has not looked into exactly how much the plans would reduce emissions, but according to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency's estimates, they would not be for Sweden to reach its goal of reducing total emissions by at least 85 percent by 2045 compared to 1990. 

“The total greenhouse gas emissions in 2045 are estimated (under the proposed climate action plan) to be 31-41 percent lower than in 1990,” the agency wrote.

Swedish vocabulary

ambitious — ambitiös

comprehensive — omfattande

emissions — utsläpp

electric cars — elbilar

goal — (ett) mål

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CLIMATE

Central and southern Italy brace for storms and heavy snow

Storms and snowfall are forecast across much of central and southern Italy over the next few days, according to weather reports.

Snow is forecast in the hills of much of central and southern Italy.
Snow is forecast in the hills of much of central and southern Italy. Photo: Miguel MEDINA / AFP

Italy’s Civil Protection Department on Monday issued ‘orange’ alerts for bad weather along Campania’s Tyrrhenian coastline and the western part of Calabria, while Sicily, Basilicata, Lazio, Molise, Umbria, Abruzzo, central-western Sardinia, and the remaining areas of Campania and Calabria are under a lower-level ‘yellow’ weather warning.

The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts is warning Italy’s central-southern regions to prepare for a blast of polar air from the Arctic Circle that will bring heavy snowfall, rain and storms, reports national weather forecaster Il Meteo.

The village of Grotte di Castro in the province of Viterbo, two hours’ drive north of Rome, mountainous parts of Sardinia, and much of the province of Campobasso in the central-eastern region of Molise were already blanketed in snow on Monday morning.

The department is responsible for predicting, preventing and managing emergency events across the country, and uses a green, yellow, orange and red graded colour coding system for weather safety reports.

An orange alert signifies a heavy rainfall, landslide and flood risk, while a yellow alert warns of localised heavy and potentially dangerous rainfall.

The current meteorological conditions mean that snow is expected to reach unusually low altitudes of around 450-500 metres, with flakes already falling thickly on parts of the southern-central Apennines mountain range at 500-700 metres altitude.

The hills of Marche, Abruzzo, Molise, Lazio, Sardinia, Campania, Calabria and Basilicata are likely to see heavy snow around the 500m mark, while areas at an altitude of 1000m or higher will see between 50-60 cm of fresh snow.

Affected parts of the country could see 50-60cm of snowfall.

Affected parts of the country could see 50-60cm of snowfall. Photo: Vincenzo PINTO /AFP

In areas where the snow is unlikely to reach, heavy rains and thunderstorms are anticipated, with rain forecast throughout Sardinia, Campania, Calabria and Lazio, reports Il Meteo.

Strong winds are forecast over the whole country, with the island regions of Sicily and Sardinia facing windspeeds of over 100km/hour and the risk of storm surges, according to the national newspaper La Repubblica.

READ ALSO: Climate crisis: The Italian cities worst affected by flooding and heatwaves

The north of the country, meanwhile, will see sun but low temperatures of below 0°C at night in many areas, including across much of the Po Valley.

While conditions are expected to stabilise on Tuesday, cold currents from Northern Europe are forecast to trigger another wave of bad weather on Wednesday and Thursday, with Sardinia and Italy’s western coastline again at risk of storms and heavy rainfall that will move up towards Lombardy, Emilia Romagna and Veneto in the north.

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