EurActiv.com

EU news and policy debates across languages

21/11/2016

What President Trump could mean for energy and climate policy

Climate Change


News
Climate & Environment 21-11-2016

Global climate action pushing ahead, despite slim pickings at COP22

The UN's 22nd climate change conference closed on Friday (18 November) with no tangible results.  But the decision of the most vulnerable states to convert to 100% renewable energy is a good signal for the future. EurActiv France reports.
News
Climate & Environment 21-11-2016

2050 climate targets conceal a downturn in effort

22 countries and a number of private companies promised at COP22 to present climate plans for 2050. But in the short term, most are reluctant to increase their current objectives. EurActiv France reports.
Opinion
Climate & Environment 18-11-2016

What local and regional government leaders at COP22 can teach the world

As COP22 begins to draw to a close, Gino Van Begin calls on all involved parties to roll up their sleeves and start implementing climate action immediately.
News
Energy 17-11-2016

Private sector pushes for better EU renewable energy legislation

After leaked documents revealing renewable energy will no longer be a top priority in the EU’s new winter package, major corporations including Google, Unilever and IKEA have made a call for improvements to the forthcoming package.
News
Climate & Environment 17-11-2016

Businesses believe market forces will save the climate

Donald Trump's election may have caused something of an earthquake among the climate negotiators at the COP22, but the mood in the business community is considerably calmer. EurActiv France reports.
News
Climate & Environment 16-11-2016

Germany positive about 2050 climate targets, 2020 looks less promising

Environmentalists have praised Germany for its ambitious 2050 emissions targets, where it is aiming for a 95% reduction in comparison to 1990 levels. But things are less rosy when it comes to its 2020 targets. EurActiv’s partner Der Tagesspiegel reports.

News
Climate & Environment 16-11-2016

Hollande to Trump: Paris Agreement is 'irreversible'

In an address directly aimed at Donald Trump, the French president said that abandoning the Paris Agreement was not an option. The US President-elect has promised to undo the climate commitments made by Barack Obama in 2015. EurActiv France reports.
News
Energy 15-11-2016

Leaked EU energy package subsidises fossil fuels, undermines renewables

EXCLUSIVE / The EU claims to be promoting an ambitious agenda at the Marrakesh climate conference, but its latest piece of energy legislation could subsidise new coal capacity and undermine market access for renewables. EurActiv France reports.
Opinion
Climate & Environment 15-11-2016

How Trump can quit the Paris Agreement

The idea that the Paris Agreement will survive the election of Donald Trump is politically naïve, writes Klaus Dingwerth.
News
Climate & Environment 15-11-2016

Climate action facing stronger headwinds at COP22

Donald Trump's election appears to have stalled the momentum of the Paris Agreement. Concern over the future of the deal is palpable among participants at the COP22 in Marrakesh. EurActiv France reports.
News
Climate & Environment 15-11-2016

Berlin, Brussels dismiss call for CO2 tax on Trump's US

Germany and the European Commission rejected on Monday (14 November) calls by former French President Nicolas Sarkozy to impose taxes on imports from the United States if President-elect Donald Trump quits a global agreement for fighting climate change.
News
Climate & Environment 14-11-2016

Africa suffers more than any other continent from climate risks

Africa has been the continent hardest hit by extreme weather events over the last 20 years, according to the latest Global Climate Risk Index, published on 8 November by the NGO Germanwatch. EurActiv's partner Journal de l'Environnement reports.


Interview
Climate & Environment 14-11-2016

World Bank economist: ‘Better climate risk management could save the poor billions each year’

Natural disasters plunge 26 million people into poverty every year, according to a new report by the World Bank. The organisation believes the efficiency of aid could be improved by targeting climate risk management efforts on the most vulnerable, Stéphane Hallegatte told EurActiv France.
News
Energy 10-11-2016

EU will have to import cow dung to meet renewables targets, study warns

EXCLUSIVE / The European Union will be forced to import organic waste, such as cow dung and wood, if it does not limit the amount of bioenergy that can count towards its renewable energy targets, new research has found.
Opinion
Climate & Environment 10-11-2016

Time for an EU climate policy 2.0?

The European Commission will soon release its second annual report on the State of the European Energy Union. This is a pivotal moment in the EU's political calendar, write Teresa Ribera and Thomas Spencer.
News
Climate & Environment 09-11-2016

Trump can kill UN climate deal, warns EU carbon market chief

EXCLUSIVE/ The election of Donald Trump as President of the United States is a “real and imminent threat” to the fight against climate change, and “completely upends every single element” of the Paris Agreement, making it almost impossible to deliver, the MEP leading EU carbon market reform has warned.
News
Climate & Environment 09-11-2016

Germany heads to COP22 without a plan

German Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks will have to travel to Marrakesh without a climate plan to present to the COP22 summit, after Economic Affairs Minister Sigmar Gabriel blocked it last night (8 November). EurActiv’s partner Der Tagesspiegel reports.

News
Energy 09-11-2016

European companies help Morocco maintain control over Western Sahara

Morocco is eagerly promoting its green credentials in its hosting of the COP22 climate change conference in Marrakesh. But a new report discloses that the North African country is consolidating its hold on Western Sahara through European-built energy projects. EurActiv Germany reports.

Interview
Climate & Environment 09-11-2016

UfM representative: 'Obligation' to protect Mediterranean from climate change

COP22 kicked off this week and achieving the goals set by the last instalment in Paris will top the agenda of the Marrakesh conference. EurActiv Spain spoke with Miguel García-Herraiz about the climate challenges facing the countries that border the Mediterranean.

Opinion
Climate & Environment 09-11-2016

Marrakesh climate conference: A litmus test for the Paris Agreement

The international community must tie its Paris Agreement commitments to the SDGs if it takes climate change seriously. The COP22 is the first test of our leaders’ resolve, write Steffen Bauer and Clara Brandi.
Interview
Energy 08-11-2016

LUKoil vice president: EU taxes are killing the refinery business

LUKoil would be delighted to sell the EU gas, but it cannot, as Gazprom has a monopoly on Russia's gas exports. However, the gas LUKoil discovered on the Romanian shelf will directly supply the EU, Leonid Fedun told EurActiv.com.
News
Climate & Environment 08-11-2016

Commission won’t regulate toasters or hairdryers after Hoovergate scandal

The European Commission today (8 November) defended its decision not to consider hairdryers and toasters for green regulation, but admitted that negative headlines about meddling Brussels bureaucrats had influenced the executive’s thinking over Ecodesign rules.
News
Climate & Environment 08-11-2016

Study: Carbon tax on food could cut GHG missions by 9%

A food tax based on a product's carbon footprint would bring benefits not only for the climate, but also for public health, according to a British study published on Monday (7 November). EurActiv's partner Journal de l'Environnement reports.
Interview
Climate & Environment 08-11-2016

What President Trump could mean for energy and climate policy

Before Donald Trump was elected America's new president in yesterday’s elections (8 November), experts told EurActiv.com that his presidency would have a corrosive effect on global and EU climate and energy policy.