France’s greenhouse gas emissions declined in 2025 but remain well short of the pace needed to meet national climate goals.
The Interprofessional Technical Centre for Studies on Air Pollution estimated emissions at 363.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent last year, a drop of about 1.6 percent from 2024.
While the decrease extends a downward trend, Citepa said the reduction is “clearly insufficient” compared with the targets set in France’s updated National Low‑Carbon Strategy, published in December.
Under that roadmap, emissions must fall by an average of 4.6 percent annually for France to stay aligned with its 2030 commitments.
Ecological Transition Minister Monique Barbut acknowledged the shortfall, calling the 2025 decline encouraging but inadequate. She said 2026 “must be a year of action” to bring the country back on track.
The ministry said one of the central goals of the strategy is to halve territorial emissions — excluding carbon sinks — by 2030 compared with 1990 levels.
