Prisoners of coal
September 6, 2019 | Read more
The Stanari coal-fired power plant, which started operating in September 2016, its ash disposal site, and the already-existing open-cast lignite mine have formed a curve around the north and east of the village. Now the locals in Stanari are regularly affected by pollution from different directions. The ones we spoke to, who live closest to the mine, claim that their health is deteriorating, their agricultural land is becoming useless and their homes are losing their value as the mine is devouring the nearby hills.
Uncertain future for Slovakia’s development funds
August 22, 2019 | Read more
The Slovak government does not seem to understand the difference between export promotion and development aid, as it proposes to lump the two under one institution, Eximbanka SR.
Slovakia’s climate duplicity
August 15, 2019 | Read more
At home, Slovakia pays lip service to the climate issues, but abroad – it does not even bother pretending. As it continues to finance crude oil facilities in Cuba, its real climate ambitions are laid bare.
The secret life of export credit agencies
August 1, 2019 | Read more
When respectable, risk-averse development banks turn away from a project, oftentimes export credit agencies (ECAs) are the ones to step in. These government-backed institutions manage hundreds of billions of dollars annually, investing mostly in large infrastructure projects in politically-volatile countries, while avoiding the same scrutiny as other public financiers.
The preparation of the Skopje Green City needs to be transparent and to include citizens and civil society in a meaningful way from the early stages of planning.
The European Commission’s July 2019 infringements package list [1] prominently features Romania. The country is called out for its industrial installations operating without an environment permit and “a systemic failure to monitor air pollution”.
