EU Lawmakers Approve Target to Reduce Emissions 90% by 2040
• On February 10, 2026, the European Parliament approved by 413 votes to 226 amendments to the EU Climate Law imposing a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990, with the possibility of using up to 5% international carbon credits from 2036 under strict conditions.
• The vote followed flexibility agreements obtained amid concerns over economic competitiveness, including a one-year delay in extending the emissions trading system (ETS2).
• This legislative revision aims at a profound transformation of the European regulatory framework, including a biennial monitoring mechanism and a potential revision of the 2040 target, pending final validation by the EU Council.
Source: ESG Today – “EU Lawmakers Approve Target to Reduce Emissions 90% by 2040”
Banned Pesticides Used in Ivorian Banana Plantations
• Compagnie fruitière, the main French banana exporter to Europe, sprayed in 2025 several pesticides banned by the EU, including mancozeb and thiophanate-methyl, on banana plantations in Tiassalé, Côte d’Ivoire, through aerial operations.
• These substances, some classified as carcinogenic or toxic, directly exposed workers, children and local residents, leading to numerous severe symptoms.
• The situation intensified NGO criticism regarding health risks and regulatory gaps in agri-food export practices.
Source: Reporterre – “Vomiting, migraines… A French company drops dangerous pesticides on Ivorian fields”
Solar and Wind Crisis: The French Sector Paralyzed
• Nearly one thousand professionals from fifty works councils in the French renewable energy sector gathered in Paris and Montpellier to protest the total halt of projects, caused by the suspension of State decisions pending the new Multiannual Energy Programme (PPE).
• This blockage led to frozen recruitment, layoffs and job protection plans, creating strong concern among employees in the sector.
• Industry actors denounced regulatory burdens, political opposition and demanded rapid clarification of the strategic framework to ensure continuity and transformation of the French energy model.
Source: Vert le Média – “‘All our projects are on hold’: solar and wind employees denounce State pressure on their sector”
Companies Destroy Biodiversity Despite Their Dependence
• The IPBES report, written by 79 international experts after three years of analysis, demonstrated the significant contribution of companies to biodiversity destruction, even though the global economy strongly depends on natural resources.
• This dynamic particularly affects Indigenous peoples, 60% of whose lands have been threatened, while less than 1% of listed companies have acknowledged their environmental impact.
• The study affirmed that a large-scale economic shift, supported by new regulatory frameworks and ambitious public policies, is indispensable to halt this global degradation.
Source: Reporterre – “Destroying life: a well-oiled business model run by industry”
The New JEII Status: A Tax Lever for Social Innovation
• On February 2, Parliament adopted the 2026 budget, introducing the “young innovative impact company” (JEII) status for companies under eight years old active in social and environmental innovation.
• The scheme grants social and tax exemptions as well as benefits for individual investors, facilitating adaptation amid declining public support.
• This recognition aims to support economic models generating lasting societal benefits and to direct public resources toward ecological and social transformation.
Source: Novethic – “‘Young impact companies’ will now benefit from tax advantages”
French Agricultural Recovery Faces an Ecological Dilemma
• On February 2, the Observatory for Agricultural Decline and Self-Sufficiency gathered senators, Minister Annie Genevard and agricultural professionals to debate restoring French food self-sufficiency in the face of regulations and foreign competition.
• The initiative defended national production while challenging the legitimacy of certain social, health and environmental regulations, despite proven impacts on biodiversity and water quality.
• This opposition revealed an unresolved tension between restoring the agricultural sector and meeting ecological requirements, fueling political polarization.
Source: Le Monde – “‘The temptation of political violence characteristic of the far right is increasing in rural France’”
Facing US Climate Denial, Europe Must Accelerate the Transition
• At the second “Chaleur humaine” Ideas Festival held in Paris on January 18, 2026, ten speakers presented concrete solutions to counter pessimism surrounding climate news, with free access to talks online and via podcast.
• Businesses and society were invited to exit fossil fuels, reform agriculture to protect biodiversity, and strengthen resilience against emerging climate threats.
• These proposals aim to drive profound transformation toward a fairer, safer and more sustainable future, supported by a majority of French citizens.
Source: Le Monde – “Chaleur humaine Ideas Festival: moving forward toward ecological transition despite everything”
The Private Sector: Key Player or Obstacle to Biodiversity Rescue?
• The eleventh global IPBES report, published in February 2026 and approved by over 150 governments (excluding the United States), thoroughly analyzed private sector responsibility and its interactions with biodiversity.
• The study revealed that $7.3 trillion in global financial flows resulted from nature-harmful activities in 2023, while restoration investments remained very low, highlighting major risks for companies themselves.
• The report aims to encourage businesses, governments and civil society to adapt practices and trigger global transformation, proposing around one hundred concrete solutions to reconcile economic activities with nature preservation.
Source: Vert le Média – “The destruction of living systems is one of the most serious threats to businesses, says the biodiversity IPCC”
France: The Agricultural Model in Crisis Amid Scientific Warnings
• A collective of French doctors and scientists from various disciplines denounced the gap between scientific knowledge and political orientations in the new emergency agriculture law, stressing the consequences of a model based on intensive chemical inputs and standardized export production.
• This model has led to major health impacts (increase in cancers, neurological diseases, respiratory disorders) and worsening precarity, with one in five farmers living below the poverty line.
• The authors called for a profound revision of agricultural policies to better align public health, economic performance and environmental protection.
Source: Le Monde – “Agriculture: ‘We, doctors and scientists, warn about the growing gap between science and lawmaking’”
Clay Shrink–Swell Risk Now Threatens Over Half of French Homes
• More than 12 million individual houses, representing 60% of France’s housing stock, are located in areas at risk of clay shrink–swell (RGA), aggravated by extreme drought episodes and confirmed by the new national mapping published on January 9, 2026.
• This risk has increased from 48% to 55% of national territory in five years, generating particularly high insurance compensation costs.
• From July 1, 2026, reinforced regulations will apply to new constructions in RGA zones to limit building vulnerability.
Source: Reporterre – “Drought: more than one in two homes exposed to cracking risks”
