The EU taxonomy is a cornerstone of the EU’s sustainable finance framework and an important market transparency tool. It is designed to help direct investments to the economic activities most needed for the transition, in line with the European Green Deal objectives. Controversially, nuclear and gas activities are included, prompting legal challenges by some NGOs and Austria. This week there has been a new challenge. This week the Financial Times (behind a paywall) wrote that five NGOs including Protect Our Winters, CLAW and Opportunity Green filed a legal complaint with the European Commission for also sticking a green label on what the NGOs said are “highly polluting” planes and ships. Opportunity Green’s Carly Hicks, quoted in the FT, described the additions regarding transport as “the worst kind of greenwashing… Big cruise ships powered with fossil gas could obtain a green label, despite the fact that these ships leak methane into our atmosphere, which has disastrous consequences for the climate . . . this decision risks driving huge amounts of finance towards highly polluting activities.” EiD would like to get the views of our readers on the EU taxonomy.
In upcoming weeks there are two events not to miss. Later this month there is the eceee Zero Carbon Industry event. In early March there is the European Energy Efficiency Conference which is part of World Sustainable Energy Days. Check out details on the two events here.
In planning travel over the upcoming weeks, here is some useful news to help you along:
- The inews website provides Europe’s most exciting new rail routes for 2024.
- For winter walking, the Responsible Travel website gives you many interesting options.
- The EuroBikes website describes winter cycling tours.
- There is always the option of virtual tourism at the Xplore Nature Channel that EiD first promoted back in September. There are now 129 videos.
Albert Einstein (1879-1955), the German-born theoretical physicist provides us with much to think about this week: “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as if nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
EiD welcomes your views about this week’s selection of posts on the zero-carbon energy transition:
- New report from EU climate Advisory Board: focus on immediate implementation and continued action to achieve EU climate goals
- With our climate crisis, the time is right for a global initiative similar to the Red Cross
- UK push for civil atomic power highlights link with nuclear weapons
- Recent trends in average fuel efficiency of new cars in US
- Europe’s energy transition is gathering speed but even with record new wind farms in 2023, EU still not on track to meet 2030 goals
- Heat pump sales falling in Europe, risking €7 billion in investment
- A more sustainable way to recycle old tyres
- Concerns about the new UN carbon market
Please send your comments on any of the posts. Please follow us on X at @EnergyDemand and @rodjanssen. Please recommend EiD to your friends and colleagues.
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Energy in Demand - Sustainable Energy - Rod Janssen 