Freshwater Conservationists Worldwide Implore Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Permanently Protect Europe’s Last Wild Rivers
September 23, 2020
Global Organizations Urge Government to Prohibit Construction of Small Hydropower Projects Endangering Critically Important Rivers and Rare and Endemic Wildlife
MEPs gas a green EU budget by voting for fossil fuels in Just Transition Fund
September 16, 2020
The European Parliament plenary session today voted for a 17.5 billion euros Just transition Fund that would permit the funding of fossil fuels projects, striking a blow to the EU’s ambitious European Green Deal.
EU-China leaders’ meeting: EU must do more to tackle legal breaches by Chinese companies in Europe, say civil society organisations
September 14, 2020
The European Union needs to step up its actions on violations of EU law by Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Europe, warned civil society groups working in southeast Europe today (1), as European and Chinese leaders meet online in lieu of the postponed Leipzig summit.
Georgia’s billion dollar dam violates international standards
September 9, 2020
Significant failures were found in the project’s compliance with the environmental and social policies of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB).
Illegal lignite mine expansion in Bosnia and Herzegovina prompts NGO formal complaint
July 30, 2020
The ongoing expansion at the Gacko lignite mine in Bosnia and Herzegovina, happening already for over three years and treated lightly by local environmental authorities, breaches the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive, argues the complaint submitted today to the Energy Community’s secretariat by the Center for Environment from Banja Luka. The organisation has sought remedies on domestic level on two occasions, but the Ministry of Environment took no action.
A checklist to ensure getting Territorial Plans for coal regions right
July 23, 2020
Relying on experience with supporting the transition of coal regions in seven countries across central and eastern Europe, CEE Bankwatch Network launches today a checklist meant to help experts, national authorities and local communities get Territorial Plans right.
New report calls on Member States to steer EU regional and recovery funding towards climate neutrality
July 16, 2020
Ahead of this week’s European Council meeting where Heads of State will gather to discuss and potentially agree on the next term EU budget, the report analyses investments and measures presented in the NECPs of the following 14 Member States: Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain. It points out the measures in NECPs that are set to receive funding from the next EU budget and recovery funding, makes the case for significant spending improvements to boost climate ambition, and indicates harmful measures in the NECPs that should be excluded from the EU funding.
How to hit the ground running on just transition in the Western Balkans and Ukraine
July 15, 2020
As the European Commission gears up to launch an Initiative meant to help coal regions in the Western Balkans and Ukraine transition to sustainable economies, Bankwatch publishes today a set of recommendations based on its experience working with the Platform for Coal Regions in Transition, on which the new Initiative will be modelled.
European Parliament asks European Investment Bank to double down on sustainability and transparency
July 9, 2020
The European Parliament has called on the European Investment Bank (EIB), the world’s largest public lender, to facilitate Europe’s effort to tackle the climate crisis by fully aligning its investment policies and practices with the Paris climate accord.
Western Balkan coal power plants breach pollution limits by 6 times, for the second year in a row
June 23, 2020
Two and a half years since pollution control legislation under the Energy Community Treaty obliged Western Balkan governments to apply EU norms, a new Bankwatch analysis finds air pollution – primarily sulphur dioxide (SO2) and dust emissions – from coal-fired power plants remains stubbornly high, choking communities across the region and beyond.
