Energy & Environment
Poland’s anti-emissions trading bid struck down by EU court
Poland’s bid to scupper the EU’s recently-updated Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) was thrown out by the bloc’s highest court, which ruled on Thursday (21 June) that the advantages of the new system far outweigh the disadvantages.
China dwarfs Europe on EV investments, figures show
European carmakers have invested seven times more in electric vehicle production lines in China than at home, according to industry figures collected by Transport & Environment (T&E), a green campaign group.
Paris meeting offers opportunity for leadership on high-seas agreement
The high seas make up nearly two-thirds of the world’s ocean, but less than 1 percent is currently protected. All this could change this September, when governments come together at the United Nations for an intergovernmental conference to negotiate a new treaty that would create a mechanism for protecting these ocean areas, writes Liz Karan.
Endangered eels at risk from Europe’s cocaine rivers
Europe’s river-dwelling creatures are threatened by traces of cocaine in some of the continent’s most well-known rivers, according to a new study. Migratory animals like the eel are particularly at risk.
Cañete: EU ‘de facto’ upping carbon reduction pledge to -45%
The EU's top energy and climate official revealed on Wednesday (20 June) that the bloc is now set to increase its emissions reduction pledge from 40% by 2030 to 45%, after EU negotiators sealed agreements on three clean energy laws in the past fortnight.
The Future of Cooling: Implications for Energy and the Environment
The demand for space cooling in buildings is expected to grow exponentially in the coming decades.
French energy giant Engie hit with €120 million ‘illegal’ state aid ruling
Luxembourg will have to recover about €120 million in unpaid tax from French energy giant Engie, after the European Commission found the Grand Duchy guilty of breaching strict state aid rules.
‘Natural solutions’ in focus as EU hosts climate summit with China, Canada
The Nature4Climate Initiative is officially being launched in Brussels on Wednesday (20 June) by a coalition of conservation organisations, business groups, the UNDP and other major environmental NGOs.
Merkel: Auto and coal workers need to know what their next jobs are
At a meeting of climate ministers in Berlin on Tuesday (19 June), the German chancellor stressed the importance of re-training to help people take part in a greener economy.
Energy expert: On climate protection, Germany has become a brakesman
While some countries like the United Kingdom quit brown coal some time ago, Germany is still struggling. A new commission is meant to sketch out structural changes but the Bundesrepublik is no longer a pioneer of climate protection, one political scientist told EURACTIV Germany
The EU needs to walk the talk on the Paris Climate Agreement
With its objective of reaching greenhouse gas (GHG) neutrality in the second half of this century, the Paris Agreement has been hailed as the most ambitious climate accord to date. But it is only as ambitious and effective as the policies that countries implement to achieve its objectives, writes Lola Vallejo.
Heavy workload delays EU report on environmental impact of drugs
The European Commission’s much-awaited communication on the environmental impact of pharmaceuticals is at an “advanced stage” but might not be adopted in the near future because of other legislative initiatives on the agenda, an EU official has told EURACTIV.com.Editor's picks
Why new coal in Turkey and the Balkans will test China’s and EU’s climate leadership
The EU and China have to live up to their responsibilities on climate change and use every opportunity to support the Western Balkans and Turkey to move beyond coal. This means renewable energy sources and energy efficiency, not new coal, argue Elif Gündüzyeli and Igor Kalaba.
Claude Turmes MEP: A net-zero emissions target by 2050 will be our red line
Any country resisting an EU-wide objective to reduce emissions to net-zero by mid-century is essentially “in the same camp as Mr. Trump” when it comes to climate change, says Claude Turmes, the lead European Parliament negotiator on the Energy Union governance proposal.
EU’s proposed tax on burning plastic waste is counter-productive
The CO2 emissions reductions achieved by plastic recycling is very costly when compared to alternatives like wind energy and solar PV, while much energy can be extracted from burning plastic waste, argue Raymond Gradus and Henriëtte Prast.
German think-tank: EU’s 32% renewable energy target ’still unambitious’
The 32% renewable energy target agreed by EU negotiators last week is still “much lower” than what would be needed to reach the Paris goals on climate change, argue experts at the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Germany.
The EU needs to walk the talk on the Paris Climate Agreement
The EU’s Energy Union Governance Regulation is not an EU-level invention or a bureaucratic imposition from Brussels. Instead, it is to a large extent an attempt to translate what several of the EU’s individual member states are already doing on climate and energy policy, writes Lola Vallejo.
EU countries ‘off target’ on carbon emissions: report
Most European nations are set to miss their carbon reduction pledges made as part of the Paris Agreement, according to a new ranking of “good”, “bad” and “ugly” countries published today (18 June) by Europe's leading NGO coalition on climate change.OpinionPromoted content
CAP reform’s eco-schemes: eco-logic or eco-nomic? Why not both?
The proposal for the post-2020 Common Agricultural Policy triggered a lot of criticism from a wide range of stakeholders, especially around the environmental aspects. But Yara believes the eco-scheme to be in line with the Commission’s ambition of moving to a “smarter, simpler, fairer and more sustainable” CAP.
A momentous decision on elephant ivory falls to Europe
China and the UK have joined the US in closing their domestic ivory markets. It is now time for the EU to follow their footsteps if we are to give Africa’s elephants a fighting chance to survive the current onslaught from global criminal syndicates increasingly involved in the poaching and distribution of ivory, argues Catherine Novelli.
UN climate draft report leaked ahead of intense climate week
If emissions continue at their present rate, human-induced warming will exceed 1.5°C by around 2040, according to a draft UN report leaked ahead of an intense climate-focused political week.
Corteva boss: ‘Mother Nature’ changes the game quickly and demands new agricultural tools
“Mother Nature” is changing quickly and this requires the adoption of technology-driven solutions that will help both growers and consumers, Jim Collins, the chief operating officer of Corteva Agriscience, the Agriculture Division of DowDuPont, told EURACTIV.
Protected grey seals at the mercy of Poland’s ruling party
Poland's ruling party has a peculiar stance when it comes to nature conservation, a clear example of this is the felling of the Białowieża Forest. The recent killings of protected seals along the country's shore have been completely ignored by the party, which believes that ecology is a notion created by the left. EURACTIV's partner Gazeta Wyborcza reports.