Myth or fact
Does en baisse mean a French climate target has been met?
Test whether en baisse means a French climate target is met. Compare a falling measurement with its baseline, required level and deadline.
- B2
- 6 claims
- Vrai ou faux ?
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In short
En baisse gives a direction, not proof that a target has been met. Compare the measured level with the target using the same baseline, scope and deadline. A fall from 100 to 90 remains short of a target of 80.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
A town’s energy use is falling. The press release welcomes the improvement, but the plan sets a separate required level. The dossier below provides both. Decide whether each statement preserves the difference between movement towards the target and actually reaching it.
Bilan énergétique · même périmètre
Référence
Année de référence2020
Niveau de départ100 unités
Objectif
Échéance2030
Niveau maximal visé80 unités
Observation
Relevé en 203090 unités
Évolution depuis 2020Baisse de 10 unités, soit 10 %
Vrai ou faux ? Decide before you see the verdict.
La consommation est en baisse par rapport à 2020.
VraiThe value falls from 100 to 90 on the same scope, so a downward direction is established.
L’objectif de 80 unités est atteint en 2030.
FauxThe observed 2030 value is 90, which remains ten units above the maximum target of 80.
La baisse observée est de 10 % par rapport à la référence.
VraiTen units removed from a starting level of one hundred is a relative reduction of ten per cent.
Le niveau visé correspond à une baisse de 20 % depuis 2020.
VraiThe target of eighty is twenty below the baseline of one hundred, giving a twenty per cent reduction.
Une amélioration et un objectif non atteint peuvent coexister.
VraiThe observed level improves on the baseline but remains above the target. These are compatible findings.
Modifier l’année de référence est sans effet sur le pourcentage annoncé.
FauxA percentage change depends on its starting value. A different reference can change the calculation.
Preserve progress and the remaining gap
La consommation recule de 10 % par rapport à 2020, mais reste supérieure au niveau de 80 unités visé pour 2030.
Consumption falls by 10% compared with 2020, but remains above the level of 80 units targeted for 2030.
This sentence recognises progress and states the unresolved gap. L’objectif n’est pas encore atteint can be appropriate before a deadline; at the deadline, l’objectif fixé pour 2030 n’a pas été atteint is more precise. If a later figure reaches the level, give that later date rather than silently treating it as timely attainment.
The table also does not identify the cause of the fall. A result can be lower after a policy without this comparison alone proving the policy caused it. Keep the target question separate from the cause question: one compares an observed level with a stated requirement; the other needs evidence explaining why the change occurred.