As Romania’s last new coal project is cancelled, a larger gas threat looms
November 19, 2020
Romania’s Minister of Economy, Energy and the Business Environment finally confirmed that no new coal unit will be built in the country.
In the Balkans, virtual run reveals real problem of air pollution from coal power plants
October 21, 2020
65 runners from 13 countries and three continents will race in Sunday’s inaugural Lung Run, a first-of-its-kind trail marathon that will measure air pollution from coal power plants in the Balkans and beyond.
A Green Agenda for the Western Balkans: Where are the teeth?
October 8, 2020
The European Commission on Tuesday published its 2020 enlargement package and an Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans. This was followed on Wednesday by a Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, expected to be endorsed by the countries’ leaders at a summit in Sofia in November. We take a look at how the proposed Green Agenda compares to our recommendations.
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.
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.
Priority energy infrastructure projects for the EU’s neighbours still anchored in fossil fuels
July 28, 2020
The energy projects proposed by the Energy Community countries for priority status, including privileged access to public funds, have now passed the evaluation stage, expecting a final decision by the year’s end. On the bright side, at least two megalomaniac projects were dropped. On the dark one, the remaining projects floor the gas pedal.
In the air tonight: visualising SO2 emissions from coal power plants in the western Balkans
July 8, 2020
Grasping what a 600% breach of allowed SO2 emissions means is not an easy job, but our data visualisation does just that. In addition to choking the communities where coal power plants are located, SO2 pollution from the Western Balkans often reaches as far as Russia and the Black Sea Coast to the east and Germany to the West!
Bosnia-Herzegovina: Illegal lignite mine expansion at Gacko must be halted
June 26, 2020
An environmental impact assessment process is currently ongoing to expand the open-cast lignite mine at Gacko in Bosnia-Herzegovina. But the mine expansion started long ago.
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.
The Balkans are decarbonising, why aren’t Serbia and Bosnia?
June 4, 2020
Despite this deadly legacy, just two years ago, all the Western Balkan countries except Albania still planned to build new coal power plants. Since then, three out of five have abandoned these plans. The region has split, creating a two-speed energy transition.
