Bulgarian recovery plan improves after six-month impasse
November 5, 2021
After a six-month delay and three revisions, the EUR 6.6 billion Bulgarian national recovery and resilience plan has finally been submitted to the European Commission. Although this delay postpones its implementation, the plan is markedly improved particularly in terms of biodiversity protection, following dialogue between environmental groups and the authorities. The process shows the key role public participation can play in delivering a green recovery.
How to monitor the spending of the EUR 672 billion recovery fund
August 31, 2021
Following the European Commission’s assessment, the majority of recovery plans have now been approved by the Council of the EU, paving the way for an unprecedented amount of money to be made available to Member States. However, with both the Commission and Member States rushing to disburse funds as quickly as possible, ensuring sufficient monitoring and control mechanisms are in place will be more important than ever before.
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.
Gazul nu e „fit” pentru criza climatică
August 6, 2021
Statele membre ale Uniunii Europene au căzut de acord să contribuie activ la diminuarea schimbărilor climatice, iar din acest motiv a fost …
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
Estonia barely scratches the surface on green recovery
June 30, 2021
Estonia’s recovery and resilience plan was one of the last to be submitted to the European Commission. Yet despite the extra time it took authorities to develop, the plan is based on an incomplete vision of a green recovery which completely ignores the issues of biodiversity and nature protection.
Commission must apply spending rules to EU recovery funds before greenlighting national plans
June 17, 2021
The European Commission has released its first assessments of how Member States plan to spend from EUR 672 billion Recovery and Resilience Facility, and Bankwatch urges the Commission to ensure that commitments for spending on climate and biodiversity protection are met before the plans are approved.
Hungary’s recovery plan – not green, just, or resilient
June 2, 2021
Although the Hungarian recovery and resilience plan has undergone major changes since its first draft, it is still far from ensuring a green and just recovery. Despite MTVSZ / Friends of the Earth Hungary’s proposals, the final version leaves households alone in their efforts to improve energy efficiency and fails to propose easily-achievable biodiversity measures. If small modifications are made during the EU-level approval process, the plan could be improved considerably.
