Applying the ‘do no significant harm’ principle in practice: examples of reforms and investments under national recovery plans that will cause harm to the environment
March 8, 2022
This joint letter, prepared by CEE Bankwatch Network, EuroNatur, WWF and ReCommon, raises concern about the application of the EU’s ‘do no significant harm’ principle under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). The letter is accompanied by a seri
Balancing gender opportunities and risks: Gender impacts of the EBRD’s investments in Uzbekistan
March 2, 2022
This report analyses the gender impact of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) portfolio in Uzbekistan.
Assessment of the Estonian operational programme
March 2, 2022
This briefing offers an analysis of the Estonian operational programme and recommendations regarding the potential for increasing the programme’s climate contribution.
Update to the Bern Convention on the Complaint No. 2016/09 – Possible threat by hydropower to “Svaneti 1” Candidate Emerald Site
February 22, 2022
The Svaneti 1 Candidate Emerald site in Georgia is threatened by the decision of the Georgian government to reduce its size for construction of the 280 MW Nenskra Hydro Power Plant (HPP) project. This is an update by the complainants on the Complaint No. 2016/9 – Possible threat to “Svaneti 1” Candidate Emerald Site who request an on-the-spot appraisal mission by the Bern Convention to Georgia, in order to investigate the threats to rivers that were recorded by Bankwatch during its fact-finding mission in July 2021.
Open letter to the EBRD and JP Autoceste about the legality of the project-level Spatial Plan of 2017 for the Corridor Vc in the Hercegovina-Neretva Canton
February 21, 2022
The letter requests that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development not sign the loan agreement for the Corridor Vc motorway subsections Mostar North – Mostar South until additional biodiversity baseline studies for the subsection tunnel Kvanj – Buna and alternative route assessments are completed. The letter also presents the conclusions of the discrimination complaint filed by war returnees, as well as the ramifications for the Bank’s rules on vulnerable groups. It asserts that signing the loan for the subsection Mostar North and South should be delayed until additional biodiversity studies and careful consideration of route alternatives are completed, particularly since the Bank’s independent accountability mechanism is about to finalize its recommendations to management in the first half of 2022.
Cutting hydropower subsidies – how are the Western Balkans doing?
February 15, 2022
The small hydropower boom, which has damaged pristine rivers and streams across the Western Balkans, has largely been fuelled by generous feed-in tariffs. In this briefing, we take a look at recent progress towards changing the rules on renewables support in the region.
Implementation of the Air Quality Directive by Western Balkan countries – 2022 update
February 14, 2022
This briefing reviews the progress of five Western Balkan countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia) on the transposition and implementation of the EU’s Air Quality Directive
Reaching for a green recovery: what holds back progress in ten EU recovery and resilience plans
February 3, 2022
The Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) is intended to finance reforms and investments in Member States to rebound from the pandemic and pursue a green transition.
What you need to know about the Green City Action Plan but your municipality won’t tell you
January 13, 2022
A step-by-step guide on what the Green City Action Plan is, why citizen participation is important for improving the future of cities, and how residents can participate.
A Just Transition Fund for the Western Balkan countries
January 11, 2022
The EU’s Just Transition Mechanism will mobilise more than EUR 100 billion in investments over the period from 2021 to 2027 to help countries shift their energy sources from fossil fuels to more sustainable ones. Part of this Mechanism is the Just Tran
