For several weeks now, the high summer temperatures observed in parts of southern Europe have given rise to openly alarmist outcries in the media and among ecologist politicians, who see in it the proof of the pudding of ‘climate change.’ In the run-up to the forthcoming European elections, right-wing parties’ distrust of this catastrophist discourse is being accused of jeopardising European policies meant to combat the ‘climate crisis.’
The European Commission’s website communicates openly about global warming. The period 2011-2020 is said to have been the hottest decade on record. In 2019, the planet’s average temperature was 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels, a data point that enabled the experts on this site to conclude that global warming is due to human action, and is currently increasing at a rate of 0.2°C per decade.
Despite the dominant discourse of the media and politicians, there is no scientific consensus on data interpretation, and even less on the alarmist communication that follows. In Europe, Greece, Italy, Spain, and the south of France had to put up with high temperatures this summer, but the weather was particularly inclement in other nearby regions. In France, the north of the country had a disastrous summer—cold and rainy, to the point of putting the tourist industry at half-mast—but that didn’t stop the press from reporting indiscriminately on the scorching summer. The hashtag #caniculemoncul (heatwavemyass) is enjoying a certain popularity on Twitter.
The controversy takes on a visual dimension in newsrooms, where weather is reported using colour-coded maps. Reporters have been using increasingly intense colourimetry on weather maps, designed to highlight heat peaks. As meteorologists explained for the French magazine L’Obs, the range of colours on maps is not merely an indication of the temperatures. Regions are coded according to deviations from seasonal norms. If other shades, such as purple, appear, it’s because “the levels of deviation from the norm are such that there are no longer enough shades of red.” If it’s hotter than normal, the map will turn red, even if the mercury isn’t reaching record levels. This is why, “if you compare a map of May with 30°C and a map of July, the 30°C is not the same colour,” explains agroclimatologist Serge Zaka. In practice, then, we clearly have a visual aid that goes some way towards dramatising the rise in temperatures.
Many have had enough of these games. Across Europe, protest movements are multiplying and intensifying. In France, grumbling is being heard against the Low Emission Zones (ZFE) in major conurbations, and against energy audits that are paralysing the property market. In the Netherlands, farmers have formed a new political force to counter measures to reduce nitrogen pollution.
At the European level, several are concerned that EU green policies are at risk, threatened by the climate sceptic embodied in the certain right-wing parties energising these protests.
Should this be seen as ‘climate scepticism’ and ‘populism’? Not really. The political parties expressing their distrust of a devastating green deal simply have the interests of their voters in mind. Europe’s citizens are showing increasing resistance to policies that come from above and call into question the balance of life that has been hard won, against a backdrop of inflation and a general rise in the cost of living: energy-efficient renovation of buildings; the fight against traditional cars (alongside the relentless promotion of electric cars); traffic restrictions with the introduction of limited-traffic zones; etc.
It’s particularly hard for people in the lowest income brackets to grasp the ‘fair’ side of a green deal driving up their energy bills, preventing them from driving in cities, condemning their cars before their time, and making their homes unfit to rent or sell.
European Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius is trying to reassure himself, and also remind Reuters, that the majority of the European population remains in favour of an ambitious ecological policy. “We have this stable majority which supports the green deal,” he said, referring to the level of support in the European Parliament for the EU’s overall green agenda.
But things take a turn for the worse when it comes to implementing concrete measures that have a direct impact on lifestyles and daily life. Recently, Poland raised its voice to denounce Brussels’ authoritarianism when it comes to motor vehicles: “Does the EU want to make authoritarian decisions about what kind of vehicles Poles will drive?” the Minister of Climate and Environment Anna Moskwa chided last month.
According to the European Council on Foreign Relations, Mats Engström, the ecological issue will be at the heart of the next European elections next spring.
In Germany, anti-green rhetoric is already one of the undeniable factors behind the AfD’s rise in the polls. In France, the Rassemblement National, through its president Jordan Bardella, is highlighting the need for an alternative ecological policy based on the rejection of punitive measures and the promotion of localism.
These right-wing parties are always blamed for ‘stirring up fears.’ Ironically, the members of the parties behind Europe’s green policies are doing the same, pointing to the risk of Europe falling behind on the zero-emission policy front, in contrast to the UK (now outside the EU), or even a country like India, which is investing colossal resources in this area.
