Vienna-Brno motorway, Austria-Czech Republic
February 18, 2011
The currently proposed route for the new Brno-Vienna motorway via Mikulov and Drasenhofen, promoted by the Austrian and Czech governments, could become the most expensive and environmentally destructive way to link these two central European cities.
EBRD undermines Slovenian climate targets and governmental review with 200 million euros for dirty coal project
January 14, 2011
Ljubljana, Slovenia — Campaign groups today lambasted the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) signature of a 200 million euros loan for the Sostanj thermal power plant in Slovenia [1], calling it a blatant affront to Slovenia’s long-term climate targets. The signing also fails to await the outcome of a governmental review of the controversial project, expected in mid-February.
Polish environmental agency rules in favour of biodiversity with New Year’s resolution to cancel airports flawed permitting
January 11, 2011
Warsaw, Poland — Campaign groups are applauding last week’s decision by the national General Directorate for Environmental Protection to revoke consent for the planned Tykocin regional airport in northeast Poland, a 125 million euros project slated to receive more than 70 percent of its financing from the EU’s Structural Funds.
Getting from A to B while cutting out the GHGs – Is some ambitious, climate-real transport lending about to turn up at the EIB?
December 7, 2010
In the face of official EU statements stressing the need to decarbonise Europe’s transport sector, our analysis has found that a rise in EIB lending between 2006 and 2009 for roads and aviation has coincided with a dramatic decrease in EIB lending for urban public transport.
Have you voted in the 2010 worst EU lobbying awards yet?
November 5, 2010
ArcelorMittal, one of the candidates for the worst EU lobby award, is the world’s largest private steel company, producing 10 per cent of the world’s steel. It is also one of Europe’s largest emitters of CO2. Yet the company successfully lobbied the European Commission on behalf of Europe’s biggest polluters to continue getting free greenhouse gas emissions permits until at least 2020.
Drop the handbags and pick up the green potential of the EU budget
November 2, 2010
The EU budget involves billions of euros of public money and it influences a huge array of economic sectors across the continent – it also stirs up thoughts of handbags.
Civil society groups welcome cancellation of Slovak D1 motorway PPP
September 3, 2010
Friends of the Earth CEPA (Slovakia) and CEE Bankwatch Network applaud today’s cancellation [1] of the 9 billion euros public-private partnership (PPP) for the first phase of the D1 motorway in Slovakia and urged the new government to change the project’s routing to avoid damaging the Mala Fatra and Velka Fatra National Parks.
Groups blast veiled decision-making at European Commission as mining industry revels in rejection of crucial Parliamentary resolution
July 7, 2010
Environmental organisations have today criticised Commissioner Janez Potocnik for heeding mining industry lobbyists over a democratically elected European Parliament, in failing to open public discussions and rejecting a resolution to ban the use of cyanide in mining processes throughout the European Union.
Sounding the potential of a European budget “for the people and the climate”
June 29, 2010
After six months of preparations and more than 50 interviews with decision makers and experts, Bankwatch has met with representatives from the European Commission, the European Parliament, the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to discuss how the next EU budget for the 2014-2020 period can effectively support a low-carbon economy with benefits for people and nature.
New report: EU funds must plug clean energy gap in central and eastern Europe
March 3, 2010
On the day that the European Commission launches its vision for 2020, its ‘Europe 2020 strategy’, a new report from CEE Bankwatch Network and Friends of the Earth Europe lays out how improved targeting of EU structural and cohesion billions for energy efficiency and renewables can get the EU – and particularly the new member states in the east – on track to meet and exceed emissions reduction targets for tackling climate change.
