http://www.endseurope.com/news ENDS Europe: Europe's environmental news service Sat, 13 Mar 2010 04:03:41 GMT Saturday Sunday 180 http://www.endseurope.com/feeds/europeLogo318x66.png http://www.endseurope.com/news http://www.endseurope.com/23504?rss=news The MEP leading the European Parliament's debate on a revision of the EU's IPPC industrial pollution directive has dropped his proposal for a "European safety net" that would prevent installation operators from deviating too much from certain emission levels. The proposal was backed by the Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23506?rss=news At least €2bn per year of the EU budget should be spent on developing low-carbon technologies through the strategic energy technology (SET) plan, the European Parliament said in a resolution adopted on Thursday. The resolution is the parliament's response to a European Commission plan to Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23507?rss=news A consultancy study published by the European Commission on Friday has recommended that proposals for a soil directive include a requirement for member states to monitor the ecological status of soils using common indicators. The commission's initial proposal in 2006 obliged member states to Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23508?rss=news The European Commission has published a handbook for businesses and public authorities on how to conduct lifecycle assessments to calculate a product's total environment impact. This was a recommendation in its IPP policy paper. Unveiling the new guidebook on Friday, environment commissioner Janez Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23494?rss=news Global safety rules for all types of electric vehicles were adopted at a UN meeting in Geneva on Tuesday. The rules lay down technical requirements for the type approval of these vehicles, a procedure for authorising their sale. Once a vehicle has been approved in one country, it will benefit from Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23495?rss=news The EU's revised mercury strategy should include restrictions on use in dental fillings, the Swedish government has said in a note to be discussed at a meeting of environment ministers next week. The note was published by the Council of Ministers on Tuesday. The revised strategy, due this year, Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23496?rss=news Spanish energy firm Endesa, part-owned by Italian firm Enel, was the largest user of carbon offsets in 2008, according to report from green group Sandbag identifying the top 10 EU corporate offsetters. Endesa bought credits to cover a quarter of its emissions. Nearly all credits came from industrial Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23497?rss=news The European Commission is considering a ban on cadmium in batteries for cordless power tools such as electric drills as part of a consultation launched on Tuesday. These cordless tools are exempted from cadmium restrictions under the batteries directive. The proposal is based on a recommendation Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23498?rss=news MEPs have called on the European Commission to assess how a tax on international financial transactions could raise funds to tackle climate change in developing countries. If a global tax cannot be agreed, the EU should consider adopting its own tax, they said. The commission's assessment would be Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23481?rss=news The majority of Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) funding continues to subsidise intensive farming activities that contribute to the loss of biodiversity in the EU, according to a technical report published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) on Tuesday. Despite CAP reforms, little is spent on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23482?rss=news Lorries meeting Euro V pollution standards emit three times more NOx than they are supposed to in urban areas, according to a Dutch note citing a study released by T&O in February. EU countries may struggle to meet air quality targets as a result, the note states. Dutch officials are also Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23483?rss=news The EU executive has approved €30.2m state aid for a low-carbon project run by steelmaker ArcelorMittal in Germany. The project aims to capture CO2 from installations and put the remaining flue gases back to furnaces to generate heat and cut coke use. The "top gas recycling" project is one of Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23484?rss=news A third of the licensed waste management companies investigated by the Portuguese environment ministry since December 2009 break the law, the Portuguese environment minister Dule Pássaro announced on Tuesday. A total of 100 companies have been investigated so far. Thirty one firms have Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23485?rss=news Climate commissioner Connie Hedegaard set out a pragmatic approach to global climate talks on Tuesday. Presenting an EU policy paper on a post-Copenhagen strategy, she insisted Europe should not "take on all the blame" for failure in the Danish capital. This is the first official paper on what the Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23486?rss=news Biomass used in power plants located no further than 70km from where the agricultural or forestry waste originated will qualify for support under Italian green certificate rules, according to a draft decree approved by the agriculture ministry. The new law implements a support framework for biomass Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23470?rss=news The UN's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) must be replaced by a new instrument that encourages private investment to help emitters meet their CO2 reduction pledges, emissions trading association IETA has said. In a report published on Friday, the association attempts to sell the concept of sectoral Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23471?rss=news Former Dutch environment minister Jacqueline Cramer has asked environmental assessment agency PBL to check for further errors in the 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it said on Monday. The international scientific authority has come under increasing fire in the Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23476?rss=news Authorities do not have to provide absolute proof of responsibility for environmental damage before requiring an installation to clean up a polluted area, EU judges said on Tuesday. But they must carry out an investigation first. Authorities must also make sure they can provide "plausible evidence" Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23477?rss=news Karl-Heinz Florenz's proposed target for collecting waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in 2016 means the existing EU rate will need to double, according to a study issued on Friday by the United Nations University. The German MEP proposes a target of 65% by weight of EEE products Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.endseurope.com/23459?rss=news EU ombudsman Nikiforos Diamandouros has criticised the European Commission for failing to make public three letters from German carmaker Porsche relating to legislation on reducing car CO2 emissions. The ombudsman called on the commission to disclose the letters 15 months ago following a request Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT