Western Balkan coal power plants are health, economic liability for entire Europe – environmental organizations
Sixteen outdated coal power plants in the Western Balkans are a public health and economic liability for the whole of Europe, with people in the EU bearing the majority of the health impacts and costs, according to a new report by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), Sandbag, Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe, CEE Bankwatch […]
Ne Davimo Beograd initiative: Decision on contents of waste incinerator study annulled
Following a complaint filed by the Ne Davimo Beograd initiative, the Government of Serbia has annulled the Ministry of Environmental Protection’s decision determining the scope and contents of environmental impact assessment for a project to build a waste incinerator in the Belgrade suburb of Vinča, ordering a repeat of the procedure, according to a press […]
RDF-burning CHP plant project given go-ahead
The Bulgarian government has given the green light to the managing authority of Operational Programme Environment, part of the Ministry of Environment and Water, to sign an administrative agreement on financial assistance with the Sofia municipality and district heating operator Toplofikacia Sofia for the construction of a combined heat and power (CHP) plant utilizing refuse […]
Extending feed-in tariffs risks turning public opinion against renewable energy
Author: Pippa Gallop, Research Coordinator, CEE Bankwatch Network One of the main factors driving the controversial small hydropower boom in the Western Balkans is the availability of feed-in tariffs, providing investors with a near-certain income for several years. The aim of this policy has been to incentivise the development of renewable energy, however most of […]
EIB issues first Sustainability Awareness Bond as Bankwatch urges it to shift away from fossil fuels
Just as the European Investment Bank (EIB), heavily present in South-East Europe (SEE), issued its first, EUR 500 million Sustainability Awareness Bond, CEE Bankwatch Network, one of the largest networks of environmental civil society organizations (CSO) in Central and Eastern Europe, unveiled a report calling on the lender to shift away from financing fossil fuels […]
Promises for coal jobs in southeastern Europe greatly exaggerated – study
Proponents of coal have overall claimed that 10,030 jobs would be maintained and 17,600 new jobs created, while according to new analysis a reduction of workplaces by around 5,170 is more likely, CEE Bankwatch Network said in a press release. A study The great coal jobs fraud covering eight southeast European countries – Bosnia and […]
Petition handed to EBRD calling on IFIs to drop “destructive hydropower in the Balkans”
Representatives from the Save the Blue Heart of Europe campaign to save the continent’s last undammed rivers have handed in a petition endorsed globally by more than 120,000 people, calling on international development banks to rein in financial support for hydropower projects in the Balkans, according to a press release from CEE Bankwatch Network, one […]
Study: Who is financing hydropower projects in protected areas in Southeast Europe
Out of the 2,112 planned or operational hydropower projects across southeast Europe (SEE) since 2005, at least 735 are in protected areas or internationally recognized areas of high biodiversity value. Of these, 152 are already operating, 34 are under construction and 513 are planned or potential, with the remainder at an unclear stage. At least […]