Brussels, July 18, 2011– The European Commission is expected to release the names of seven voluntary certification schemes tomorrow, approved to certify biofuels according to the ‘sustainability criteria’ set out in the Renewable Energy Directive. This follows a lawsuit filed by environmental law organisation ClientEarth, Friends of the Earth Europe (FOEE), FERN and Corporate Europe …
Lufthansa’s green claims don’t fly
Brussels/Berlin/Hamburg, July 15, 2011 – Lufthansa launches its first controversial bio-fuelled flight today, amidst outcry from green groups [1]. Fuelling aeroplanes with biofuels presents Lufthansa and the aviation industry with a convenient smokescreen, greenwashing their image, facilitating the airline industry’s expansion plans and diverting political attention from the real need to cut air travel in …
No emissions cuts for Europe at climate talks
Brussels/Bonn, August 6 – International climate negotiations ended today with Friends of the Earth Europe criticising Europe and other rich industrialised countries for trying to avoid making any emission reductions. Research released during the latest talks in Bonn, Germany shows how a number of serious loopholes in the Kyoto Protocol seriously threaten efforts to tackle …
NEW REPORT: Biofuels for Europe driving land grabbing in Africa
Brussels, Belgium and Benin City, Nigeria, August 30, 2010 – The amount of land being taken in Africa to meet Europe’s increasing demand for biofuels is underestimated and out of control, new investigations by Friends of the Earth reveal today. [1] The research, which looked at 11 African countries, found at least five million hectares …
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Citizens and policy makers urge greater corporate accountability
Brussels, 12 July – More than 73,000 EU citizens and 140 elected representatives and MEPs have signed a petition, to be delivered to the European Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry, vice president Antonio Tajani today, calling on the Commission to hold companies operating in the EU legally accountable for any harm they cause to people …
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NGOs welcome Parliament vote as a first step to tackle excessive food speculation
Members of the European Parliament voted today on the European Markets Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR), the first ever legislative proposal put forward by the European Commission to regulate ‘Over-The-Counter’ (OTC) derivatives markets. NGOs welcome the agreed text as a first step to tackle excessive speculation in agriculture commodities by providing for transparency in completely opaque trillion …
NGOs welcome Parliament vote as a first step to tackle excessive food speculationRead more



