Greenpeace sues against eco-labels for nuclear reactors – economy

The EU Commission rejected the objection – now one of the most controversial Brussels laws is being sued: In September, environmental groups had complaint lodged against the taxonomy law. This regulation classifies investments in nuclear and gas power plants as sustainable under certain circumstances, and the regulation has been in effect since the turn of the year. The Commission dismissed the complaint last week. Well announces Greenpeacetherefore to file a lawsuit with the EU General Court in Luxembourg in April.

And it’s not the only complaint: the Austrian government also has one procedure strained. Other governments can join the lawsuit until early March. So far, however, only Luxembourg has promised this step. The traffic light coalition in Berlin is also dissatisfied with the Commission’s so-called delegated act, but could not agree to go to court. Austria’s government estimates that there will only be a verdict in 2024. In addition, the German MEP René Repasi from the SPD has one lawsuit filed.

These proceedings are likely to be the last chance to stop the explosive law after a surprisingly large majority in the EU Parliament approved the legal act last summer has waved through. The rule belongs to green taxonomy. This classification system determines which economic activities are climate and environmentally friendly. It has to be green washing stop, so the bad habit that companies or investment funds sell themselves as greener than they really are. The EU Commission wants to increase trust in eco-financial products.

As early as April 2021, the authority had presented a legal act with criteria for important industries and goods: a total of 170 activities that account for 80 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. However, the thorny question of what applies to nuclear and gas-fired power plants was initially postponed. When the Commission finally drafted the Nuclear and Gas Act presented a year agowhich provoked heated debates.

“A fatal signal for the European financial sector.”

Because the regulation declares investments in gas and nuclear power to be sustainable under certain conditions. Therefore, German municipal utilities or the French nuclear company EDF could issue eco-bonds to raise the billions of euros for new gas and nuclear power plants. Such promissory notes bear lower interest than normal bonds, and financing becomes cheaper. In addition, eco-funds may hold shares in the companies. This has been sharply criticized by many MEPs, governments such as Austria and environmental groups. “Awarding a sustainability seal to environmental sinners is a fatal signal for the European financial sector and will massively undermine the climate goals,” says Marie Kuhn, financial expert at Greenpeace Germany.

The EU Commission argues that nuclear and gas power plants are needed as bridging technologies for the transition to a climate-friendly power supply. However, critics fear that the inclusion of nuclear and gas undermines the credibility of the entire taxonomy from the point of view of environmentally conscious investors and fund companies.

Austria justifies its lawsuit by saying that the Commission should not have passed “such far-reaching and politically sensitive decisions” as a delegated act, as stated in a communication. This type of commission law, which is difficult to stop, usually only specifies details.

In addition, Vienna complains that the overriding rules for the green taxonomy prohibit the inclusion of the two technologies. After all, natural gas is “fundamentally a climate-damaging energy source,” and nuclear power plants run the risk of reactor accidents with enormous environmental damage. Greenpeace and MEP Repasi make similar arguments.

Not all nuclear and gas power plants benefit

Reactor new builds that have been approved by 2045 are to benefit from the legal act, and investments in service life extensions can be taken into account up to 2040. The prerequisite for the coveted sustainability label is that the facilities meet the latest safety standards and that the governments also have a concept for setting up a repository for high-level radioactive waste by 2050 at the latest.

Gas-fired power plants only receive the green label if they replace coal-fired power plants and are very efficient. In addition, they must completely switch from natural gas to climate-friendly fuels such as biogas or hydrogen by 2035. Expanding hydrogen production in this way by then, however, is likely to be difficult.

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