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Publish date: December 15, 2021
News
In a joint letter sent on the 14th of December, Bellona Europa and Deutschland together with 16 other civil society representatives, call on the European Commission to deliver on its stated dedication to a broad stakeholder consultation process on the upcoming EU Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Complementary Delegated Act. The Complementary Delegated Act, expected by the end of the year, will set out to what extent fossil gas and nuclear can be viewed as a sustainable economic activity.
The letter was sent on the 14th of December by Dutch NGO Milieudefensie, noting that:
“Market credibility and trust is key for the Sustainable Finance Taxonomy to deliver on its potential to shift capital to sustainable economic activities. Recognising this, the European Commission has, since the establishment of the Technical Expert Group (TEG) and of the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance, stated its strong dedication to broad stakeholder engagement and incorporation of the Commission’s own Expert Groups’ advice as part of this process.
The undersigned are alarmed by recent developments, signalling a shift away from this approach. The complementary climate Delegated Act expected before the end of the year, setting out the Sustainable Finance Taxonomy’s criteria for both fossil gas and nuclear, must be subjected to the same process of public engagement and consultation process as the first delegated act”
Read the full letter here.
Recent attacks on Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant "mark the beginning of a new and gravely dangerous front of the war," the UN atomic agency's director general said last week.
After years of inaction, Germany is working on its Carbon Management Strategy to resolve how CCS can play a role in climate action in industry. At the end of February, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action published first key points and a proposal to amend the law Kohlenstoffdioxid Speicherungsgesetz (KSpG). Bellona Deutschland, who was actively involved in the previous stakeholder dialogue submitted a statement in the association hearing.
In the midst of a global discussion on whether natural gas should be used as a transitional fuel and whether emissions from its extraction, production, transport and use are significantly less than those from other fossil fuels, Russia has developed ambitious plans to increase its own production of liquified natural gas (LNG) in the Arctic – a region with 75% of proven gas reserves in Russia – to raise its share in the international gas trade.
In this news digest, we monitor events that impact the environment in the Russian Arctic. Our main focus lies in identifying the factors that contribute to pollution risks and climate change.