Starting July 1st, the highest polluting cars have been banned from driving on Parisian streets between the hours of 8AM and 8PM on weekdays. Drivers that do not comply with this restriction can be fined 35 euros. The ban applies to all cars that were registered before January 1, 1997; it also applies to two-wheeled vehicles, such as scooters, that were registered before June 1, 1999. This ban is an initiative by Mayor Anne Hidalgo to lower the city’s air pollution levels. Approximately 500,000 drivers will be affected.

The coalition government in Germany agreed to ban fracking for shale gas. According to the decision, only test drilling will be allowed, with permission of the relevant state government. Industry in Germany would like to keep the option of fracking open, arguing that it lowers energy costs, but Germany has a strong green lobby opposed to fracking. If the law is approved by the German parliament, Germany will join France, which has already banned fracking.

The top administrative court in France overturned a 2014 ban on genetically modified (GM) corn earlier this month. The April 15, 2016, ruling overturned a March 2014 decree that prohibited Monsanto's MON 810 corn, stating that the corn did not demonstrate serious health or environmental risks, as required by the European Union's rules for withdrawing a GM crop already approved by the EU. But the ruling was largely symbolic, as France has already legislatively banned the growing of any GM corn.

The creation of a marine reserve around the Austral Islands, originally proposed in 2014 by the municipal councils of the region, is close to becoming reality. On March 30, inhabitants of the Austral Islands submitted the proposal to the government of French Polynesia. If the project is approved, it will be the largest natural reserve in the world. It would span 1 million square kilometers—an area larger than Texas and Nevada combined.

On December 12, 195 countries reached a historic deal to address the global challenge of climate change. The accord was reached after nearly two weeks of debate and years of preparation. Ahead of the Paris talks, 186 countries submitted plans to cut carbon emissions through either 2025 or 2030. The agreement commits countries to limit greenhouse gas emissions with the aim of not surpassing a 2-degree rise in global temperature, and an aspirational goal of limiting the temperature increase to 1.5C.

The European Commission is taking Poland to court due to Poland’s inability to tackle poor air quality. Poland is Europe’s most polluted country, with pollution levels more than double those in France. More than 40,000 Poles die each year due to air pollution. Poland uses coal and, on occasion, garbage to heat the country’s homes. South Poland, near the ski resort towns, feels the effects stronger than the rest of the country due to local neglect of environmental rules.

French President Francois Hollande and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched an international solar alliance at the onset of the Paris COP21 climate summit. The alliance includes more than 120 countries and was described by Modi as “the sunrise of new hope, not just for clean energy but for villages and homes still in darkness, for mornings and evenings filled with a clear view of the glory of the sun.” The goal is to bring clean and affordable solar energy to everyone. The majority of the countries involved are tropical, solar-rich nations.

The European Union approved a plan to give sub-standard homes a green makeover, but only after a large downgrade of the initial plan. The Energiesprong project planned to give 10-day green makeovers for more than 100,000 public housing units by installing wraparound insulating facades, solar panels, and Ikea kitchens. But the EU approved only 10% of the scope of the original project. The new plan will provide 5,000 remodels in the United Kingdom and 5,000 in France. Energiesprong is now asking the United Kingdom government to help with financing the project.

The French Farm and Environment ministries announced that they would use the European Union’s opt-out scheme to ensure France’s ability to prohibit the production of genetically modified (GM) crops. In March 2015, the EU agreed on an opt-out scheme that permits EU countries to exclude themselves from requests for GM cultivation. The only GM crop currently grown in Europe is Monsanto maize, produced in Spain and Portugal. Other crops are being reviewed for approval by the EU.

The French government on May 21 added a provision to a broad energy and environment bill that would manage food waste from supermarkets. The provision would require the country's largest supermarkets to enter into contracts to donate unsold but edible food to charities or to farms for animal feed and compost by July 2016. Penalties for failing to comply include fines upward of $80,000 and the possibility of jail time for managers.