Tag Archives: european
Bulgaria’s Farmland Sale Ban Contested At Constitutional Court
By our dpa-correspondent and Europe Online auf Facebook posten Auf Twitter posten Sofia (dpa) – Bulgaria‘s Constitutional Court is to rule on a controversial, newly extended ban on the sale of farmland to foreigners, Bulgarian lawmaker Chetin Kazak said on Friday. Bulgaria‘s parliament on October 23 extended an existing ban on the sale of farmland to foreign citizens to 2020. According to legal experts and politicians of the ruling coalition of the Socialist Party and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) of the Turkish minority, the move was in breach of the country‘s 2007 accession treaty with the European Union. “We hope the Constitutional Court will rule as quickly as possible because Bulgaria‘s European future is at stake,” Chetin Kazak said. The claim, submitted on Friday, was signed by 55 members of parliament, both of the Socialist Party and of the MRF. The extension of the farmland sale ban, that had been due to expire on December 31, had been proposed by the nationalist Ataka party. Ataka chief Volen Siderov explained his party‘s motion by noting the low prices of farmland in the poorest EU member state. Continue reading
European Energy Policy and the EU Road Map till 2050
Fabrizio Barbaso 03/11/2013 BRUSSELS – Today, energy security is more complex than ever before. Europe imports more than a half (54% in 2010) of its energy. It is very vulnerable to the global security situation. At the heart of European energy policy is the EU Energy 2020 strategy. This requires the EU to reduce its GHG emissions by 20% by 2020, compared to 1990; to increase the share of renewable energy sources in our energy use to 20% – almost double what it is now (currently 13% of its final energy consumption comes from renewables); and to increase energy efficiency by one fifth, over the same period. The 2020 agenda has been a broad success. Member States, local authorities and individuals have embraced it. Renewable energy has boomed, even at a period of economic slowdown, renewable energy investment is growing and the majority of new power plants in the EU are now renewables based. Energy Efficiency has taken a major step forward. More and more domestic items are subject to energy design and labelling requirements. The new Energy Efficiency Directive makes new obligations for local authorities, builders and energy suppliers to improve the use of energy both in homes and businesses. The European Strategic Energy Technology Plan has helped technology development. Offshore wind, fuel cells, second generation biomass, solar and PV, geothermal, smart grids, Carbon dioxide capture and storage – these are just some of technologies given priority in EU initiatives and funding. The challenge is to keep this up, despite the economic and financial crises. On renewables, we are working hard to push the network links to integrate new renewable resources into existing grids. We have also to prevent subsidy schemes from overcompensation at a high cost by society. On energy efficiency, which traditionally gets less attention, we will have to take care that new economic growth does not lead to a rise in energy use. On greenhouse gas emissions, there are additional difficulties as low coal prices and low carbon prices are making the task of reducing emissions more challenging. But the target of 2020 will be reached. The EU has already achieved GHG reduction by more than 18% below 1990 levels. Even so, the low-carbon, or “green”, economy will not be complete by 2020. Nor even by 2030. It will take us at least another three decades. That is the lesson of our 2050 Energy Roadmap. This Roadmap, which is based on a number of different scenarios, tells us that a low-carbon energy economy is possible. It is necessary. It is affordable, but it will take time and effort. And we need to get the rest of the world onto the same path. After all, Europe now accounts for only around one eighth of global emissions, and our share is diminishing. Low carbon investors are now waiting for the EU to agree the political direction for post-2020, leading up to 2030. Looking ahead, what are the trends in European energy policy? First, as I have already mentioned, market integration and reform are gaining in urgency, as we seek to complete the internal energy market for energy. Second, there is more and more EU collaboration in energy infrastructure. The European Recovery Programme for Energy was able to rescue a number of projects which were threatened by the economic crisis. The Hungary Croatia gas interconnector was just one which is now completed, thanks to EU support. The Austria – Hungary power interconnector will also help this region. The Commission’s new list of Projects of Common Interest will help us focus our efforts on specific projects which will help security of supply, sustainability and the integration of all parts of the European market. New money will be available under the Connecting Europe Facility. The Commission has adopted just a few days ago a list of priority projects for the EU and the Ministerial Council tomorrow will do the same for the Energy Community. Third, our external energy policy is becoming stronger and more cohesive. We have seen the EU taking a lead in negotiating with Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan over access to gas reserves. And this summer we had an important step forward on our proposal for a Southern Corridor to link that region with Southern Europe with the agreement on the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which should also play an important role as a key part of South-East Europe’s “Gas Ring”. Continue reading
Europeans Tour Southeast Forests, Discuss Pellet Supply Chains
By Sue Retka Schill | October 31, 2013 Meeting the sustainability requirements of the growing market for pellet exports to Europe was the focus of a workshop held in Savannah, Ga., Oct. 23-24. Organized by the Pinchot Institute for Conservation and the International Energy Agency Bioenergy Tasks 40 and 43, the workshop brought together over 60 experts and stakeholders representing conservation organizations, government agencies, universities, and the forest and renewable energy industries from nine different countries. The Savannah workshop explored the potential application of sustainability criteria being developed by European governments and industry within U.S. forests. Other sponsors of the dialogue included the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc., Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification, E.ON, Georgia Forestry Commission, Weyerhaeuser, MeadWestvaco Foundation and Plum Creek. Representatives of U.S. pellet producers, European purchasers, conservation organizations and U.S., Canadian, and European policymakers met over two days to analyze and debate sustainability issues. The first day’s session moved from presentations covering a broad discussion of sustainability to a description of forest management in the Southeast and looking at the supply chain in pellet production. On the second day, participants toured industrial timberlands certified to SFI’s Forest Management standard, a nonindustrial family forest and the Georgia Biomass LLC pellet mill. The field tour showcased several tools to mitigate environmental risks along the biomass supply chain. Pinchot and the IEA task forces will release a report in early December summarizing the workshop and identifying opportunities for aligning U.S. forestry systems and European Union sustainability criteria, said Pinchot project director Brian Kittler. The project team will also use feedback gathered at the workshop to provide recommendations to SFI, which is currently undergoing a standards revision process. “Bringing European biomass consumers and U.S. biomass producers together has made it abundantly clear that there is a need to align sustainability criteria with the realities and complexities of North American forest management, and to that end, the sort of dialogue fostered by this event is essential,” said Martin Junginger of Utrecht University in the Netherlands and the IEA Bioenergy Task 40. “This dialogue focused on finding practical solutions for ensuring that the benefits of robust markets for forest biomass can further advance our nation’s conservation achievements,” said Al Sample, president of the Pinchot Institute. “The Pinchot Institute is committed to building understanding of the multiple perspectives on sustainable sourcing, sustainable forestry and greenhouse gas balance.” Presentations and other event materials can be found here. Continue reading
