EnvinMin Fechet: The summer of 2024 brings 3.5-degree thermal deviation, above Paris target

 The summer of 2024 brought us a thermal deviation of 3.5 degrees Celsius, which is much above the target officials established in Paris, in 2015, minister of environment, waters and forests Mircea Fechet stated on Monday.'We've broken all records in June, July and August. All three summer months were officially declared the hottest in the 120 years long history of measurements by the National Meteorological Authority (ANM). And this happens in the context in which officials were discussing in Paris, back in 2015, about how bad a deviation by 1.5 degrees Celsius would be and how we were supposed to avoid it by any means. Unfortunately, the summer of 2024 already shows a thermal deviation of over 3.5 degrees Celsius, and I explain this to you only to understand exactly the situation we're in,' minister Fechet said at a specialized event.He also specified that when discussing climate change he refers not just to the hot weather, but also to the extreme meteorological phenomena, about heavy precipitations falling in a short amount a time, on small areas.'All this considered we are trying to be ambitious and we have earmarked a record budget of RON 2 billion this year from the Environment Funds to finance photovoltaic systems for individuals. Not long ago I was saying that my wish is to stop only when every roof in Romania is covered with a photovoltaic panel. And I don't know how close that moment is when every Romanian will benefit from such investments, but I can tell you for sure that, looking at what happens in the private sector and looking at the covered markets and in general at the large buildings covered with PV panels, I feel optimistic,' said the minister of environment.He added that he hoped constructions stores to join the Guarantee Return System (SGR) too, so that Romanians will be able to buy different products for their homes too with vouchers and not just food.'I hope that, soon, Romanians will be able to bring their PETs to the constructions stores as well to get vouchers to buy not just food, as it happens in a conventional store, but a sink or some other product that such stores sell. I promise you that I will come in persons to the inauguration of such system in a constructions store,' said the official.The minister of environment, waters and forests, Mircea Fechet, on Monday participated in the inauguration event of the photovoltaic installations developed by a company operating in this field for retailers Auchan and Leroy Merlin.Helexia, a branch of Voltalia and an important player on the international market when it comes to the energy transition in 2023 launched the construction of 12 photovoltaic projects on roofs with a total capacity of 3.6 megwatts for Leryon Merlin, as well as the equipping with solar panels of 16 Auchan Retail Romania stores.