Coal in Romania – a review of coal assets and their impact on the environment
August 16, 2021
This report documents the power plants and coal mines in Romania in order to understand their negative impact on the environment, economy and public health and support a more rapid coal phase-out. The analysis was performed based on information collect
The beginning of the end – coal phase out in Romania
August 16, 2021
On 27 July, the most polluting coal power plant in Romania was shut down. After more than 50 years in service, the Mintia power plant is closing because it has failed for a long time to comply with the legal emissions limit. The European Commission sent infringement notices to Romania five years in a row for non-compliance with the Industrial Emissions Directive. At the same time, two units at Oltenia Energy Complex, Romania’s largest lignite power producer, will be closed by the end of the year. For Romanian coal power, this is the beginning of the end.
Fossil gas investments undermine green recovery in Romania
August 9, 2021
Despite strong criticism from the European Commission, the Romanian authorities are determined to use the EU recovery fund for massive investments in fossil gas and hydrogen.
Romania’s recovery and resilience plan: Investments and reforms conflicting with the decarbonisation process of the energy sector
August 8, 2021
As the European Commission is currently reviewing the Romanian Recovery and Resilience Plan, there is a risk that billions of euros in public money might end up supporting the fossil fuels industry. This briefing provides an analysis of the recovery pl
The EU Bank about to fail becoming a responsible lender
August 6, 2021
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is closing today the public consultation as part of the review of its Environmental and Social Sustainability Framework. A large group of civil society organisations (CSOs) sent today written contributions highlighting their disappointment with the EIB proposals, and calling for concrete actions to ensure that the EIB will operate as a responsible lender in the future.
More stakeholder participation needed in preparation of new cohesion programmes
July 29, 2021
A joint Bankwatch-CAN Europe analysis in 11 countries shows little involvement of local stakeholders in the programming process of EU structural and investment funds. This contradicts EU rules on partnership and multi-level governance and won’t help reach the Green Deal’s objectives.
No renovation wave in sight across EU recovery plans in central and eastern Europe
July 26, 2021
In the national recovery and resilience plans, energy efficiency and building renovations can play a key role for Member States to achieve the required target of 37 per cent of expenditures related to climate. The potential to modernise buildings is the greatest in central and eastern Europe, where the building stock is particularly inefficient. But an assessment of eight national plans across the region finds uneven progress towards these aims. Christophe Jost of Bankwatch concludes that this is likely to hamper efforts to decarbonise the region’s building stock in line with the Renovation Wave´s ambitious objectives.
Central and Eastern Europe’s buildings renovation plans fall far short of 55% emissions cuts
July 16, 2021
July 16, 2021 by Christophe Jost Leave a Comment
When Nature Shows the Way: supporting biodiversity for Europe’s green recovery
July 14, 2021
Biodiversity loss and climate change are the biggest environmental threats we face today. To address such crises, the EU has set in place a series of climate and environmental objectives as part of the European Green Deal. However, in order to achieve
Concern for irrigation, drainage and other water management measures in national recovery and resilience plans
July 14, 2021
The briefing outlines proposals for widespread irrigation and water management measures within six central and eastern European recovery plans and explains why these measures will likely be damaging to biodiversity. These include the development of int