19. Sep. 2014
blog
This Sunday, what might be the biggest climate march in history will take place everywhere across the world. The Green members in the European Parliament will play their part and join the numerous activities organised at local level in their own country. Our politicians who are negotiating our future must see that we are already making this energy and ecological transition happening. The more we will join, the bigger it will resonate. So.. we are on the move! ... you? Join the climate march this Sunday and share the word!
05. Sep. 2014
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On Thursday 4th September a group of several MEPs including Green members wrote to the new Head of the Commission Jean Claude Juncker to warn him about the decision to merge energy and climate portfolios...
10. Jul. 2014
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Early July, the European Court of Justice decided on the Ålands Vindkraft case and reaffirmed the conformity of the Renewable Energy Directive with the EU Treaty, notably on the prerogative of national renewable energy support schemes. The Greens welcome the decision.
10. Jun. 2014
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This week the European Commission will be discussing an unofficial DG Trade proposal on Export Finance and Coal Fuelled Power plants. The Greens have big concerns that this proposal, once adopted, would be ruining Europe's climate credibility in the run-up to the COP 2015 negotiations.
30. Apr. 2014
blog
Shale gas is no longer a 'what if' in Europe. Exploration is underway in several European countries, with huge areas designated for potential fracking.
Lech Kowalski's film looks at the reality of unconventional gas exploration in three communities - in Zurawlow, Poland; in Balcombe, UK; and in Pungesti, Romania. When multinational companies impose their agenda on citizens, democracy is called into question and often media does not report any opposition to fracking activities.
This film portrays the realities on the ground and tells the story of extreme energy extraction in Europe from the people who stand to lose the most.
25. Feb. 2014
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This week several climate items are on the agenda of what is now one of the last plenaries in Strasbourg before the EU elections take place. This Plenary session also coincides with the citizens' 'week of climate action', which started on 22nd February and which will last until Saturday 1st March. The Greens have decided to support the movement and organise their own action in the European Parliament
04. Feb. 2014
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On January 9th, the environment and industry committees agreed on the necessity of three specific targets for the 2030 climate and energy framework: one for reducing greenhouse gases, one for increasing the share of renewable energy sources and one for energy saving. However the Commission President and the Commissioners simply decided to ignore the call. For the Greens, the proposals that were presented by the Commission on 22 January are poor and extremely worrying...
30. Jan. 2014
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The agreement to phase-out the use of F-gases, extremely powerful greenhouse gases, has today received the support of the environment committee of the European Parliament. The Greens are very pleased with the breakthrough: the EU is now setting the pace for a global phase-out of these super greenhouse gases, which are otherwise projected to make up twenty per cent of greenhouse gases by 2030.
16. Jan. 2014
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This week saw leaked draft recommendations and a draft communication on shale gas from the European Commission circulated widely before their proposed release next week as part of an overall climate and energy package. After months of planning, consultation, studies identifying how legislative proposals are necessary, the Commission has given in to the huge pressure put on them by a handful of fossil fuel companies...
14. Jan. 2014
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Members of the European Parliament today voted with a clear majority to support a controversial own-initiative report on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology...
23. Nov. 2013
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The climate negotiations that have been held in Warsaw for the last two weeks are finally over. All discussions on the three main items of the COP 19 – the roadmap to Paris, financing and the decision to create a mechanism for ‘loss and damage’ - have been agreed upon. However, the key issue of emission reductions have not been addressed and lots of work remains to be done by the EU towards COP21...
21. Nov. 2013
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There are only a few hours left before the official closure of COP19 and still not any real sense of emergency. The attitude here at COP19 from some developed countries is just irresponsible. The EU now has only a few hours left to create a new dynamic and do its utmost to make sure that countries are no longer divided based on old rifts between the developed and the developing world and that some kind of progress can finally be made.
19. Nov. 2013
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The high level segment of the COP19 has now started. In order for the negotiations to make tangible progress, building trust this week will be vital and the EU must play its part to ensure a successful outcome at this year’s conference. With the 2015 COP being held on its territory, it cannot afford to risk losing face…
18. Nov. 2013
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The international coal and climate summit organised by the Polish Ministry of Economy is taking place today and tomorrow. The Greens, which organised a counter summit last week, severely criticized the decision. The interests that must be defended at the COP19 are those of the people, not those of the big polluters.
14. Nov. 2013
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The COP19 which will last until 22nd November started 4 days ago. The Greens remind the negotiators and Poland in particular that there is no time to loose if the international community is to be able to limit global warming below 2°C and agree on a fair, ambitious legally binding treaty in Paris end of 2015. The group has also launched a series of events and activities in Warsaw to engage with the local public and push for tangible progress to be made before the end of next week...
22. Oct. 2013
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We are now only 3 weeks ahead of a new UN Climate Summit. This year, the COP 19 will be hold in Poland from 11th to 24th of November. The Greens call on the Polish government to play a leading role to ensure that Europe pushes the negotiations forward and pave the way to an ambitious climate deal to be agreed upon in Paris in 2 years time.
08. Oct. 2013
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This Wednesday 9th October the European Parliament will vote on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive. The Greens in the European Parliament want to ensure the best protection for European citizens and the environment.
27. Sep. 2013
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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate change (IPCC) will release its report on the latest scientific research on climate on Monday 30th September. The summary for policy makers is currently being finalised by the different government representatives in Stockholm and will be presented this morning at 10 am. For the Greens, leaders from Europe and beyond know enough now and cannot continue to ignore the overwhelming body of scientific evidence....
11. Sep. 2013
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This lunctime the Parliament is to vote on the 'Indirect Land Use Change' (ILUC) report. Several years ago, agrofuels were presented as an adequate solution to limit the negative climate impacts of the transport sector. However, many scientific reports have shown that the climate impacts from ILUC can vary substantially between feedstocks and can negate all of the greenhouse gas savings of agrofuels relative to the fossil fuels they replace. The Greens warn about necessity to properly address the challenge...
04. Jun. 2013
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Yesterday, negotiators reconvened in Bonn for another round of technical climate discussions that will last until 14th June. This time the key talking points of the meeting will focus on climate mitigation as well as on proposals on how to scale up renewable energy and energy efficiency policies...
