Brussels, Belgium — The European Commission is right to call for the EU to lead the world in pushing for renewable energy and
efficiency, Greenpeace said today, but its ‘European Strategy for Sustainable, Competitive and Secure Energy’ Green
Paper contains serious flaws.
Most notably, the Green Paper gives undue emphasis to carbon capture and storage, despite the unresolved risks and uncertainties surrounding this technology of burying carbon dioxide beneath land or sea. Renewable energy and energy efficiency have a proven potential and they work. Carbon capture is unproven, expensive and perpetuates the reliance on fossil fuels [1], in contrast with renewable energies, which are clean, cost-effective and contribute to European competitiveness.
Additionally, the Commission does not announce an imminent, overdue proposal for binding, long-term targets for renewable energies and energy efficiency, which are crucial to achieve swift results [2]. And it fails to identify the energy policy implications that future climate commitments will entail, ignoring a decision by EU leaders at the Spring Summit 2005 to support the reduction of developed country emissions of greenhouse gases by up to 30% by 2020.
"The Green Paper suggests unconditional support for carbon capture and storage, which is unproven and potentially unsustainable. Although it declares good intentions on renewable energy and efficiency, it stops short of placing them at the heart of Europe's energy mix. Neither does it question the status quo of giving preferential treatment to polluting and hazardous energy sources, such as nuclear energy and fossil fuels, which have already received billions of euros in subsidies and state aid," said Mahi Sideridou of Greenpeace. "It seems like it will take more than 25 Commissioners to change a light bulb in the EU - their ideas do not spark the energy revolution we need."
The Energy Council on 14 March and the Spring Summit on 23-24 March will debate and take a position on the future of EU energy policy. Greenpeace is calling on national governments to commit to fighting climate change by promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Other contacts:
Mahi Sideridou, EU policy director on climate & energy, Greenpeace European Unit, tel +32 (0)2 274 1904 or +32 (0)496 122 094
Katharine Mill, media officer, Greenpeace European Unit, tel +32 (0)2 274 1903 or +32 (0)496 156 229
Notes:
[1] There are critical risks, limitations and uncertainties associated with carbon capture and storage, a means of trapping carbon dioxide from fossil
fuel combustion and "storing" it in the sea or beneath the surface of the Earth. This expensive end-of-pipe technology requires investment in new
fossil fuel infrastructure and shifts the burden of action to future generations. Carbon dioxide leakage poses a risk to human health, the environment
and the climate. Ocean storage is an environmentally unacceptable option – it could result in greatly accelerated acidification of large areas of the sea
and would be ecologically detrimental in the vicinity of injection sites. Carbon dioxide disposed of in this way is likely to get back into the atmosphere
in a relative short time. Moreover, the “storage” of fossil fuel-derived carbon dioxide in the water column, at the seabed or beneath the seabed from
vessels or platforms would be contrary to the London Convention (1972) and, in the North East Atlantic region, to the OSPAR Convention (1992).
[2] Greenpeace has shown that, coupled with ambitious efficiency measures, the target for the primary energy share of renewables should be 25% by
2020. Sectoral targets for the share of renewable energy in electricity, heating/cooling and transport are also required. See EU Energy Scenario:
http://eu.greenpeace.org/downloads/energy/EU25scenario2050.pdf