This Friday (November 29) a crucial meeting will take place in Brussels which is likely to determine the fate of the EU’s controversial biofuels policy.
The meeting between all EU ambassadors will aim to reach an agreement on how to reform Europe’s failing biofuels policy, which Europe’s energy ministers will then ‘rubber stamp’ when they vote on December 12.
Friends of the Earth Europe, along with other environment and anti-poverty organisations, is campaigning for the EU to halt the expansion of biofuels that compete with food, as a step to phasing them out altogether. The burning of biofuels causes food insecurity, deforestation and climate emissions. The only way to end biofuels competing with food production is to phase-out the misguided use of food for fuel altogether.
Robbie Blake, biofuels campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe, said: “Urgent action is needed now – this week could effectively be the last chance to stop EU biofuels policy causing hunger, deforestation and carbon emissions. We need to end biofuels competing with food production by phasing out altogether the misguided use of food for fuel altogether.”
This comes in a week where Jean Ziegler, a UN official, has called on EU leaders to take action against the “crime against humanity” of burning food crops to produce biofuels.
In this critical week people are being asked to use Twitter to help put pressure on their ministers to stop the harm caused by EU biofuels policy. See below for instructions on how to take part.
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ACTION IS NEEDED NOW!
Please use Twitter to tell ministers in your country to stop the EU’s harmful biofuels policy.
Here are some example tweets (please replace @[XXX] with your chosen target!):
#EU #biofuel policy aids climate change & global #hunger – Jean Ziegler http://gu.com/p/3ky3v/tw. @[XXX]: cap NOW ?5% #FoodNotFuel
.@[XXX] must intervene to end the madness of food for cars not people. http://gu.com/p/3ky3v/tw. Cap #biofuels NOW ?5%
.@[XXX] Crucial #EU meeting this Friday MUST cap EU #biofuels ?5% – takes food from 100m a year http://gu.com/p/3ky3v/tw
Burning food crops to produce #biofuels a “crime against humanity” http://gu.com/p/3ky3v/tw. @[XXX]: cap #biofuels NOW ?5%
.@[XXX] & EU leaders must respond to “idiocy” of #biofuels policy http://gu.com/p/3ky3v/tw. Cap #biofuels NOW ?5% #FoodNotFuel
“Evidence is increasingly clear that climate change benefits of most #biofuels are negligible/nil” http://gu.com/p/3ky3v/tw. @[XXX]: cap NOW ?5%
#EU #biofuel policy harming forests, climate and people – UN Human Rights expert. @[XXX] MUST pressure EU to cap #biofuels NOW ?5%
Your target should be your Energy or Environment minister:
Belgium: @JokeSchauvliege
Croatia: @ivanvrdoljak @zmajlovic
Czech Republic: @Kuba_Martin
Denmark: @martinlidegaard
Estonia: @JuhanParts @KeitPentus
Finland: @Vapaavuori @VilleNiinisto
France: @_PhMartin_
Germany: @philipproesler @peteraltmaier
Ireland: @patrabbittetd @PhilHoganTD
Italy: @flaviozanonato
Lithuania: @EU2013LT
Luxembourg: @KreckJ
Malta: @KonradMizzi @partitlaburista
Poland: @Piechocinski
Romania: @RovanaPlumbMMP
Spain: @AriasCanete @magramagob
Sweden: @annakarin_hatt @lenaek
UK: @eddaveykands @SusanKramer @ukineu
