Sarkozy pledges action on global warming

PARIS - President Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday promised a green revolution, unveiling a mix of tax measures and investment pledges that he said would put France in the vanguard of the war against global warming.

"France isn't late, but France wants now to be in the lead," he said in a speech wrapping up an environmental policy conference seeking ways to cut greenhouse gas emissions and help change attitudes on the environment.

The congress was one of the highest profile environmental initiatives ever launched in France and fulfilled an election campaign promise by Sarkozy, who has said his government will emphasize sustainable development.

Sarkozy pledged investments to improve energy efficiency in buildings and measures to encourage greener vehicles. Under the plan, all incandescent light bulbs would be banned by 2010, and single-pane windows would be replaced by double paned windows.

The package, which will be voted on by Parliament early next year, was welcomed by France's main agricultural lobby and by environmental groups.

"There's undoubtedly ambition there, there's a cultural change at state level" said Yannick Jodiot, program director at Greenpeace France. "But, unfortunately, there's still too much ambiguity there for us not to keep being extremely vigilant."

Sarkozy said he would order the suspension of commercial cultivation of crops genetically modified to repel pests, pending a wider study. He also asked the agriculture minister to look at halving the use of farm pesticides, possibly in 10 years.

France has long lagged behind Germany and Scandinavian countries in promoting environmental innovation. But with former vice president Al Gore sitting alongside him yesterday, Sarkozy faced high expectations. He steered clear of a generalized "carbon tax" that some environmental organizations had wanted but unveiled a series of fiscal measures to punish polluting vehicles and bolster the fight against greenhouse gases.

"I am against any extra tax that would weigh on households and companies," he said. "There is no question of increasing the level of taxes."