'Greenpeace activists unfurl a banner that says 'There are only two mistakes you can make on the road to fighting climate change: one is not starting, and the other is not going all the way.' The banner was unfurled over the base of the iconic, 17 metre high statue of Buddha in Hyderabad, India.
“The bank may have blinked, but what the
planet really needs is decisive leadership,” pointed out K. Srinivas, Clean
Energy Campaigner, Greenpeace India,
“One billion dollars is a lot of money[1],
but the initiative will remain weak until present government policies and market
conditions correct their heavy bias towards fossil fuels. Setting aside a pot
of money is different from ensuring that it is actually used for sustainable
energy solutions. The $1 billion fund will make a difference only if the share
of coal and fossil fuels in the Bank’s energy portfolio is phased out. That
would be real leadership.”
The Bank’s next Annual
Meeting -- its 40th -- coincides with the 10th
anniversary of the Kyoto Protocol, and as Laetitia De Marez, Climate
Campaigner, Greenpeace France said, “There is no
better time to force links between finance, climate policy and energy policy. We
have forced the ADB to challenge the wisdom of business as usual. We have revealed the true face of the bank to its own
governors. Some
donor members of the ADB
have now begun to push the bank to
exercise leadership. The question now is, how will the Bank respond?”
Over the past five days, the Bank has remained apathetic towards
coal-impacted community representatives demanding that the bank take
responsibility for the impacts of its projects. “These communities will leave Hyderabad outraged by the fact that despite an audience
with President Kuroda and promises of addressing health, environmental and
social concerns, this Bank remains a cold-blooded, coal-hearted institution,”
said Tara Buakamsri, Climate and Energy campaigner, Greenpeace South-East Asia.
“The road to climate protection must be marked by milestones, which
international financing institutions such as the ADB can provide. Right now
there appear to be none. Worse,
the bank’s proclamations are being negated by their disgraceful addiction to
dirty energy and propagation of ‘clean coal’, which is nothing but a scam,” added
K Srinivas.
Over 800
cyberactivists have participated in a cyberaction against the ADB, launched by
Greenpeace to coincide with the AGM. Greenpeace is demanding that the ADB shift
all funding away from coal and towards a 100 percent renewable and energy
efficiency target.
Greenpeace is an independent campaigning
organisation that uses non-violent, creative confrontation to expose global
environmental problems, and force solutions essential to a green and peaceful
future.
For further information, please
contact: www.greenpeace.org
K. Srinivas, Clean Energy
Campaigner, Greenpeace India:
+919845112130
Namrata
Chowdhary, Media Officer, Greenpeace India: +91 98108 50092
[1] The energy sector portfolio for 2007 and
2008 is derived with the assumption that lending from 2000 to 2008 is $850
million annually. Total assumed lending
from the energy sector is $7.65 billion from 2000 to 2008. With this assumed lending volume, Greenpeace
estimates that the bank’s 1 billion clean energy fund is equivalent to 13.1%.