The European Commission has proposed rules requiring EU member states to prepare for global temperatures 3°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100, and to name the authorities responsible for managing climate risks.

Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said cutting emissions alone can no longer protect citizens. Europe is warming about twice as fast as the global average. Hoekstra estimated that extreme weather caused more than €100 billion in damage across Europe this summer and that heat contributed to about 50,000 deaths.

The cost of adapting

The Commission estimates adaptation will cost about €70 billion a year until 2050, but the proposed framework comes with no new funding. Only about a quarter of exposed assets in Europe are insured.

The proposals come ahead of the COP31 climate summit in Turkey. Planning for 3°C of warming is a sharp departure from the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting the rise to well below 2°C.