Environment

CEO's work on environmental issues focuses on energy and the fight against climate change, as well as on water.

The Pope and the Pesticides

05.04.2017

Participants to the 10th Forum for the Future of Agriculture, an annual lobbying event organised by Syngenta and the EU lobby of large landowners, were greeted with a "special" video message, an "Address from His Holiness The Pope". Unfortunately, the video did not actually come from the Vatican.

Adoption of Dieselgate report to help reclaim emissions regulation from car industry

04.04.2017

Corporate Europe Observatory welcomed the European Parliament‘s adoption of the inquiry report on the ‘Dieselgate‘ scandal this morning as a first step towards curbing the excessive influence of the car industry over EU emission regulations.

‘Dieselgate‘ report will help to wrench car emission rules from industry control

28.02.2017

Corporate Europe Observatory welcomed today‘s final inquiry report on the ‘Dieselgate‘ scandal as a first step towards claiming EU emissions regulation back from the car industry.

Emissions trading reform: romancing the polluters

14.02.2017

The European Parliament voted on the reform of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) on 15 February, agreeing to weak annual climate targets and massive new handouts to polluters for another decade.

Gold-digging with investor-state lawsuits

13.02.2017

Canadian mining company Gabriel Resources is using an investor-state lawsuit to push through its illegal toxic goldmine in the historical Romanian village of Roşia Montană. The claim foreshadows the multi-billion $ claims which could hit EU member states if the EU-Canada trade deal CETA comes into force.

Civil society calls on European Parliament environment committee to reject CETA

11.01.2017

Trade unions and environmental organisations are calling on the European Parliament's environmental committee to reject the controversial EU-Canada trade deal CETA, which could undermine EU environmental and public health standards.

Dieselgate report slams Commission and national governments for maladministration

20.12.2016

After nine months of hearings, the draft report of the EU Parliament’s inquiry into the Dieselgate scandal has it black on white: the European Commission and EU member states had known since 2004-05 that diesel cars’ nitrogen oxide emissions were far above legal limits – yet neither took action.

Industry fights EU on employee protection despite 100.000 workplace-related cancer deaths a year, CEO report shows

15.12.2016

While cancer research and treatments are ever advancing, industry lobbying against better protection from workplace-related cancers has been intense, as a new report by Corporate Europe Observatory shows.

‘Better Regulation’ to make things worse

14.12.2016

Our new report shows how industry lobbies present employee protection against work-related cancers as an 'unnecessary' burden on companies, and explains which tactics have been used to weaken and delay the European Union's revision of the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive.

Climate

Cañete takes European fossil fuel interests to Marrakech climate summit

16.11.2016

As the final days of COP22 approach, Corporate Europe Observatory, Corporate Accountability International, 350.org and AITEC have published further evidence of the close relationship between policy makers and Big Polluters in the EU. The central findings of the analysis are presented in three infographics.

Climate

Leak exposes Commission attempt to delay policing of diesel emissions

07.11.2016

As the investigation into the Dieselgate affair deepens both in VW’s home country Germany as well as at EU-level, the European Commission’s role in the scandal comes into focus. Corporate Europe Observatory recently obtained leaked documents which reveal the illegal attempt of the Commission’s enterprise department (DG Enterprise) to delay enforcement of EU emissions standards for diesel cars in a bid to help industry save money.

How industry lobbying got toxic artificial sports fields exempted from new EU REACH rules

11.10.2016

A documentary program broadcast on Dutch TV last week has sparked major concerns about the health risks of playing football on artificial turf fields made with rubber granulate from old car tyres. Corporate lobbying seems to have been behind the lack of regulation of these surfaces used by thousands of children every week.