Slovakia will file a lawsuit against the European Commission (EC) over its demand the EU member cut its annual carbon dioxide emissions from 2008-2012, Slovak government officials said on Wednesday. Environment Minister Jaroslav Izak told reporters the carbon dioxide (CO2) cap for 2008-2012, which the European Commission had ruled in November, was insufficient and the process of setting the quota was inappropriate.

"The government decided at today's meeting to file a lawsuit against the decision by the European Commission on CO2 allocations for Slovakia for the years 2008-2012," he said. A spokeswoman for European Union's Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas declined to comment. The European carbon market limits emissions of heat-trapping carbon dioxide from heavy industry and is the 27-nation bloc's main tool to steer it towards its targets under the Kyoto Protocol on global warming.

But Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said the emissions cut demand was unfair at the time when Slovakia needed new electricity production capacities after it had complied with another EU demand to shut down one bloc at the older of its two nuclear stations. "The reason for the lawsuit is mainly an economic one," Fico told journalists after a government meeting at which ministers agreed to file the motion.

"Such a significant reduction (in emissions) would cause serious troubles for the economy," he said. Under the scheme's first phase from 2005-07, now widely dubbed an experiment, the EC handed out too many emissions permits, prompting a carbon price collapse and underlining the need for tougher limits second time round. Since November several states have tried to persuade the Commission to soften its stance. Other countries have also threatened legal action.

The issue has split Germany's government, with the Economy Ministry saying on Tuesday it was considering a complaint against the Commission while the Environment Ministry rejected the idea.
(Planet Ark, 26/01/2007)