National Low-Carbon Strategy: SNBC
The National Low-Carbon Strategy, what is it?
The national low-carbon development strategy or National Low-Carbon Strategy (SNBC) is France's roadmap to combat climate change. It defines a path for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and sets short- to medium-term objectives: the carbon budgets. It has two ambitions:
Achieving carbon neutrality by 2050
Reducing the carbon footprint of French consumption
Public decision-makers, at both national and territorial levels, must take this strategy into account.
Concrete Actions to Achieve Objectives
Carbon neutrality is defined by the energy-climate law as "a balance, within the national territory, between anthropogenic emissions from sources and anthropogenic absorptions by greenhouse gas sinks." In France, achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 involves reducing our greenhouse gas emissions on its territory by a factor of 6 compared to 1990. Specifically, this means reducing France's emissions to 80 MtCO2e down from 458 MtCO2e in 2015 and 445 in 2018.
This objective will require significant efforts and a profound transformation of lifestyles, consumption, and production.
The SNBC is based on a scenario for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, derived from a prospective modeling exercise, called the "reference scenario." This scenario, developed based on current knowledge without making technological bets, allows for the definition of a credible pathway for the transition towards this objective.
The Budget
In the short and medium term, this is broken down into carbon budgets for the periods:
2019-2023 (cap of 422 MtCO2eq on average annually),
2024-2028 (cap of 359 MtCO2eq on average annually)
2029-2033 (cap of 300 MtCO2eq on average annually)
Compliance with the carbon budgets should allow for achieving the target of a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990.
The SNBC defines for French territory objectives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions for the next fifteen years: the carbon budgets. These are emission caps that must not be exceeded, expressed as an annual average per 5-year period in millions of tons of CO2 equivalent. They are broken down by sectors of activity and by greenhouse gas.
Every five years, the national low-carbon strategy undergoes a complete review cycle. It includes:
The adoption before July 1, 2023, and then every 5 years, of a five-year law setting the objectives and action priorities regarding energy and climate after parliamentary debate, starting from the next review cycle
The revision of the reference scenario of the strategy and the definition of a new carbon budget
The revision of the strategy and its orientations
The conduct of formal consultations with a view to adopting the strategy within 12 months following the adoption of the five-year law.
The revision of the strategy particularly allows for the adaptation of the reference scenario to changes, especially in knowledge (technical, economic, social, and geopolitical).
