Earth Lobby’s Attack On Deep Drilling And Truck Exhausts …

• September 28th, 2010
• Posted by EUEditor

Greenpeace Europe has started a lobbying campaign, telling Members of the European Parliament they should outlaw deep sea oil wells like the Deepwater Horizon – and it is accusing MEPs of planning to weaken air pollution laws governing trucks.

NO MORE DEEP HORIZONS

The EU transport advisor for the environmental group, Franziska Achterberg, said in Brussels, 28.9.10, the Parliament needed to impose a total ban on wells like the one that blew out in the Gulf of Mexico this year (picture).

An estimated 10% of Europe’s oil was coming from such wells, and that volume of oil should be off-set by “credible measures” to reduce consumption.

“There is no safe way of extracting oil from the bottom of the ocean. The Parliament should apply all its weight to avoid any chance of another Gulf of Mexico-style environmental disaster in Europe”, she said.

“Greenpeace is confronting dangerous oil extraction across the world.

“In the most recent action, environmental activists prevented a giant oil drilling ship, the Stena Carron, operated by US energy giant Chevron, from beginning a dangerous deep water drilling program in the North Atlantic.”

BANS ON THE VANS

Greenpeace has also confronted the Environment Committee of the European Parliament, saying it is on the way to approving measures to water down the regulation of exhaust emissions from trucks.

It says about a third of oil in Europe is used by cars and vans, but recent technological advances have shown that level of consumption could  easily be reduced.

Some top-selling van models have achieved cuts in emissions exceeding 10% since 2007, and the European  Commission had put forward proposals that would require carmakers to cut emissions by 14%, for the nine year period to 2016.

WEAKER ALTERNATIVES

However, according to Greenpeace, pressure from vehicle manufacturers had led MEPs to think of some weaker alternatives.

“MEPs are likely to widen a number of loopholes undermining already weak CO2 targets for vans proposed by the European Commission for 2016 and 2020”, said  Franziska Achterberg.  .

“They could support measures allowing carmakers to continue producing high emissions vans by offsetting them with a limited amount of electric vans; by exploiting so-called ‘eco-innovation’ technologies (with unquantifiable benefits), and by reducing the CO2 emissions of passenger cars instead of vans.

“Vans make up around 10% of road vehicles in the EU, and are responsible for 6-7% of the EU’s oil consumption.

“Oil consumption and CO2 emissions from vans are forecast to increase by 17% between 2010 and 2020, in the absence of additional measures.

“By resisting efficiency targets that it can easily reach, the car industry is destroying the climate and prolonging Europe’s addiction to oil.

“As long as they continue producing inefficient vehicles, carmakers will encourage oil companies to take more risks to reach oil in dangerous places.”

Reference

Greenpeace Europe, Brussels, “European Parliament vote could prolong Europe’s addiction to oil”, 28.9.10.

Pictures  nwprogressive.org, greenpeace, nwprogressive.org, 2pace.net

• View Similar Articles