Buy European and Sustainable Act: Accelerating the Transition to a Low-Carbon European Economy

Carbone 4 was delighted to have you join us for the webinar presenting a study conducted across all European Union countries, which aims to understand the extent to which the introduction of a Buy European and Sustainable Act (BESA) in public procurement could accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy and enhance the resilience of certain European economic sectors.

In fact, public procurement accounts for 10% of the European Union’s total carbon footprint and represents an amount equivalent to 15% of the EU’s GDP. However, even though the Paris Agreement commits EU countries to drastically reducing their GHG emissions, 80% of public procurement contracts are currently based solely on the lowest price.

Reducing GHG emissions through public procurement is essential for EU Member States to achieve their climate goals. Sustainable public procurement can be used to mitigate the environmental impact of the public sector and send a strong market signal to accelerate the low-carbon transition and build resilience in economic sectors such as industry, construction, transportation, energy, and agriculture. Public procurement can have a decisive impact in helping EU Member States achieve their climate goals.

The study is based on the hypothesis: “What would the impacts have been if EU countries had decided to align their public procurement policies with their GHG emissions reduction targets at the time of the Paris Agreement, with full effect starting in 2019? ” It concludes that there would have been significant benefits for the climate, as well as positive economic and social impacts.

See the results of this study, with Hughes-Marie Aulanier, Antoine Crépel, Jori Damond (Carbone 4), Samuel Leré (European Climate Foundation), and Anaïs Voy-Gillis (IAE de Poitiers) in attendance.

Buy European and Sustainable Act: Accelerating the Transition to a Low-Carbon European Economy

Watch the replay