Blog Categories: Europe

European Parliament to Address #ExxonKnew Scandal, Consider Action Against the Fossil Fuel Giant

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Food

Parliament Committee Will Address a Petition Submitted by Food & Water Europe Demanding Accountability for Decades-Long Climate Change Cover-Up

May 15, 2018 – The Petitions Committee of the European Parliament announced that it will consider tomorrow a petition calling on the Parliament to take action to hold ExxonMobil accountable for its decades-long cover-up of internal documents tying its fossil fuel production to globe-threatening climate change. The scandal, known colloquially as #ExxonKnew, arose in 2015 when evidence came to light showing that Exxon scientists confirmed at least as early as 1981 that fossil fuel extraction and burning contributed significantly to dangerous climate change, but hid those conclusions and funded massive efforts to publicly challenge its own internal science.

Parliament’s interest in challenging Exxon comes in stark contrast to the Trump administration’s egregious climate denial and aggressive promotion of the fossil fuel industry. President Trump appointed Rex Tillerson, the CEO of ExxonMobil during much of their science cover-up period, as his first secretary of state. The European Union, signatory of the Paris Climate Agreement and aiming at becoming global leader in renewable energy should take its responsibility to draw boundaries to fossil fuel multinationals like Exxon. With ExxonMobil’s misleading campaign on the European Parliament’s agenda, parliamentarians have now the chance to help protect EU citizens from the corporation’s risky business and to walk the talk of preserving EU climate and energy targets.

“ExxonMobil has misled the public debate on climate change for over 40 years but due to close ties between ExxonMobil and the Trump administration, an initial push to hold the corporation accountable is stalled,” said Member of European Parliament Marina Albiol Guzman, a member of the Petitions Committee. “Tackling ExxonMobil’s climate cover up now in the European Parliament could be an opportunity for parliamentarians to walk the talk and prove their willingness to tackle climate change and honor the Paris Agreement.”

“European Parliament’s interest in holding ExxonMobil accountable for its decades of lies and cover-ups is certainly encouraging,” said Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch and Food & Water Europe. “The ball is now rolling on a process that may finally force Exxon to reckon with its toxic, deceitful past and answer for its assault on our planet. We urge Parliament to act swiftly and aggressively in this critical matter, and take powerful action against Exxon.”

 

Contact: Frida Kieninger – Tel: +32 (0) 2893 1045, Mobile: +32 (0) 487 24 99 05

Chemical Companies Go to Court to Challenge Scotland Fracking Ban

Chemical Companies Go to Court to Challenge Scotland Fracking Ban

The international petrochemical giant Ineos, joined by the Scottish company Reach Coal Seams Gas, is in court to challenge the Scottish government’s indefinite moratorium on fracking.

Faced with overwhelming public opposition to drilling, the government announced early this year that it would extend a fracking moratorium indefinitely. The companies are trying their case in the Court of Session this week.

Ineos is the main shale license holder in the UK, and plans to frack parts of Scotland and England in order to use the hydrocarbons as a feedstock for plastic production. The company currently imports fracked hydrocarbons from the United States.

In response to the court challenge, Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of Food & Water Watch and Food & Water Europe, released the following statement:

“Ineos’s appalling and astonishing record of environmental violations at its facilities across the globe should warrant serious scrutiny. Now it wants to do more harm to clean air, safe water, and a livable climate by trying to force the Scottish government to let it frack their country. Tens of thousands of people across Scotland have spoken out against this dangerous plan, and Scottish officials were right to stop Ineos before it could start drilling. The future belongs to clean energy, not to fossil fuel corporate behemoths like Ineos, which will use every tool at its disposal to force fracking on Scotland. Ineos has lost in the court of public opinion, and they will lose this court challenge as well.”

EU/UK Andy Gheorghiu, Food & Water Europe, [email protected]

US Peter Hart, Food & Water Watch, [email protected], 732-839-0871

Joint Statement by Food & Water Europe and Friends of the Earth Europe on PCI List Vote

March 14th, 2018 – MEPs in Strasbourg today voted on a motion to oppose the EU’s Projects of Common Interest (PCI) list, on the basis that it includes over 100 new fossil gas infrastructure projects. However there was no majority to reject the list, which also includes a number of other energy infrastructure projects.

Reacting to the vote, Antoine Simon, Fossil Free campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe, said: “A full rejection of this list of priority energy infrastructure (PCI) was always going to be a tall order; but it’s welcome to see 177 MEPs for the first time opposing the EU’s reckless support for new climate-wrecking gas projects. The time is running out to end our dependency on fossil fuels and that means no new gas pipelines.”

Frida Kieninger, Campaign Officer for Food & Water Europe, said: “While it is the first time that the EU-Parliament voices open objection to this priority list for fossil fuels, this is also the first PCI list designed and adopted after the Paris Climate Agreement entered into force. With a far too strong focus on fossil gas projects, today’s adoption of the PCI list marks a setback for the environment, human rights and our global climate.”

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Notes: 

The PCI list covers priority energy infrastructure projects to be built in Europe, drawn up by the European Commission, Member States and European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG). Approved projects become eligible for EU funding (under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF)).

The list contains the controversial Southern Gas Corridor, which has already been associated with serious human rights violations in Azerbajan; the MidCat pipeline between France and Spain facing growing protests on both sides of the Pyrenees; and three LNG terminals in Croatia, Greece and Ireland, for environmentally destructive shale gas imported from the US.

Friends of the Earth Europe has previously revealed that the list is based on flawed data provided by the gas industry, and has not been tested against the Paris Agreement’s climate targets.

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Contact:
Antoine Simon, Fossil Free campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe, [email protected], +32 (0) 486 685 664
Frida Kieninger, Campaign Officer for Food & Water Europe, [email protected], +32 (0) 487 249 905

 

Broad Coalition Backs National Trust in Fracking Fight With Ineos

Categories

Food

Brussels and Washington, D.C. — Citing concerns over climate change, protecting sensitive ecological sites, and preserving local control of lands, a diverse coalition of groups and academics from the United Kingdom and the United States released a letter to Prime Minister Theresa May supporting the National Trust’s efforts to prevent the petrochemical company Ineos from making the first steps towards fracking in one of England’s most treasured environmental areas.

The letter is supported by Food & Water Watch, Food & Water Europe, Oil Change International and academics from both countries, including the Marine Conservation Society, Scientists for Global Responsibility, Campaign to Protect Rural England, World Wildlife Foundation, Greenpeace, Frack Free United, Friends of the Earth and UK Youth Climate Coalition. The letter was also signed by individuals and academics including fashion icon Vivienne Westwood and her son Joe Corré, Cornell Professor Robert Howarth, Dr. Sandra Steingraber, Prof. Nick Cowern and Prof. Peter Strachan.

“Ineos’s fracking dreams are a nightmare for communities on both sides of the Atlantic, and that’s why so many anti-fracking campaigners are speaking up to stop them,” said Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch and Food & Water Watch Europe. “Anyone who cares about the climate crisis, the increasing burden of global plastics pollution, and the air and water pollution associated with petrochemical manufacturing should get active in the fight to stop Ineos from fracking the UK–and anywhere else for that matter.”

Ineos currently is the major shale license holder in the UK, and is attempting to force its way into the National Trust’s Clumber Park, a sensitive and historically significant site that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. After blocking access to land surveyors, Ineos has responded by taking legal action against the National Trust.

With facilities around the globe, Ineos’s environmental violations and history of air pollution have come under increased scrutiny. The petrochemical giant is pursuing drilling in the United Kingdom in order to supply its facilities with fracked hydrocarbons that can be used to produce plastics. Their corporate vision comes at a time in history when global warming and the plastic pollution of our oceans and shorelines are the most critical issues of our generation, and the ones to come.

The company’s ambitions are relevant to battles over fracking in the United States. Ineos developed a fleet of “dragon ships” to carry gas liquids from Pennsylvania to its facilities in Scotland and Norway. Those shipments are likely to increase if the massive Mariner East 2 pipeline is completed. But that pipeline — a project of Sunoco/Energy Transfer Partners — has been a source of intense controversy, with construction causing drilling spills and water contamination. Most recently, a series of sinkholes caused state regulators to halt operations on the existing Mariner East 1 pipeline.

Ineos’s fracking plans across the United Kingdom have been running into determined local opposition. As the letter to Prime Minister May notes, opinion polls show strong public opposition to fracking, which suggest that the public understands the array of risks associated with the practice. And the Scottish government, in response to overwhelming public opposition, announced its decision to ban fracking last year.

As the letter to Prime Minister May puts it, “Climate change is one of the most urgent and complex threats to the British countryside today. Fracking poses significant risks to the natural environment through loss or fragmentation of habitat, disturbance of wildlife and potential pollution of watercourses that support sensitive ecosystems and biodiversity and as driver of climate change.”

Download the letter here

 

 

Over 100 US. & International Groups Tell Wolf: Shut Down Mariner East Pipeline

Sunoco’s Controversial Gas Liquids Pipeline
Poses Threats in US and UK


Philadelphia — Dozens of US and international organizations released a letter to Governor Tom Wolf encouraging him to bring a halt to Sunoco’s Mariner East 2 pipeline.

The groups point out that the pipeline puts residents on both sides of the Atlantic at risk: Communities in eastern Pennsylvania that will bear the burden associated with fracking, the communities along the pipeline route endangered by spills and explosions, and those living near the petrochemical facilities in Europe that will use the gas liquids carried by the pipeline.

“This effort links the local battles against Sunoco with the vibrant anti-fracking movement in Europe that is focusing on the environmentally disastrous record of Ineos, the petrochemical colossus that is seeking to benefit from fracking in the US and the UK,” said Food & Water Watch Executive Director Wenonah Hauter. “The dangers posed by this project are serious, and require immediate action from Governor Wolf, who is the only the person with the power to protect all of these communities.”

The massive Sunoco project has been plagued by drilling spills and water contamination, which eventually led the state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to suspend construction permits. But weeks later, the Wolf administration settled with Sunoco, clearing the way for construction to resume.

Governor Wolf has long been an ardent supporter of Sunoco’s project, and pushed to expedite construction permits.

“Since the Wolf administration’s approval the Mariner East 2 pipeline one year ago, the call for him to stop it has grown to include organizations from across the United States, Scotland, England, and Europe,” said Karen Feridun, the founder of Berks Gas Truth. “These groups stand in solidarity with communities whose health, safety, private water supplies, quality of life, and property rights are threatened by bad actors like Sunoco/Energy Transfer Partners on this side of the Atlantic and Ineos in the UK and Europe. Governor Wolf can and must stop this pipeline right now and become the climate leader Pennsylvania needs. His choice will be his legacy.”

The letter, organized by Food & Water Watch, Food & Water Watch Europe and Berks Gas Truth was signed by US groups like Oil Change International, Progressive Democrats of America, Friends of the Earth, the Center for International Environmental Law and the Center for Biological Diversity. They are joined by organizations in Europe like Frack Free United (UK), Friends of the Earth EWNI (England, Wales and Northern Ireland), Talk Fracking (UK), Friends of the Earth Scotland, Frackwatch and Our Forth Against Unconventional Gas (Scotland), Not Here Not Anywhere (Ireland) and Ecologistas en Acción (Spain).

“From both sides of Scotland- East and West – we join our voices to those calling on Governor Wolf to protect his state and people from fracking and pipelines,” read a joint statement from Scottish groups Frackwatch Glasgow and Our Forth Against Unconventional Gas. “We feel fortunate that our government has banned fracking – but we feel sad that our country is destination for most of the gas piped through the dirty and dangerous Mariner East pipeline as it is finally transported via Dragon Class Ships, to travel up and down the Firth of OUR FORTH and pass perilously close to the capital city into the heart of Scotland.  Here, most of the gas will be used to make throwaway plastic to pollute our oceans and add to greenhouse gas emissions. We need some real changes, on both sides of the Atlantic, to move forward in a positive way! The fact is that leaders – real leaders – must now start planning for and working with communities for – a very different economic future.”

The letter closes with this message to Governor Wolf: “It is time to put a stop to this dangerous pipeline, and to move to a full ban on fracking. Your decision to do this will benefit our communities and our health, and it would protect residents of the state of Pennsylvania.”

Contacts:

US
Peter Hart, Food & Water Watch, [email protected], 732-839-0871
Karen Feridun, Berks Gas Truth, [email protected]

EU/UK
Andy Gheorghiu, Food & Water Europe, [email protected]
Penny Cole, Frackwatch Glasgow, [email protected]
Callum McLeod, Our Forth Against Unconventional Gas, [email protected]

Energy Committee Dismisses Effort of 18 MEPs to Stop Fossil-Fuel-Favoring Infrastructure Priority List

BRUSSELS — Today, the Energy Committee of the European Parliament rejected a motion for an objection to the third list of energy “projects of common interest” (PCIs) which was proposed to parliamentarians by the European Commission in November 2017. The PCI list is a priority list for infrastructure projects which benefit from advantages for permit granting and environmental impact assessments and which are eligible for CEF funding.

The objection, submitted by an initial number of 18 MEPs from 5 political groups (ALDE, EFDD, GUE, Greens and S&D), highlights the high proportion of fossil fuel infrastructure, notably gas projects, on this priority list. In today’s Committee votes, only 15 Members voted in favour of an objection, while 44 opposed it, with 2 abstentions.

“This list is the first PCI list that was drafted after the Paris Agreement came into force. Instead of aligning the list with international climate commitments, the European Commission proposed an amount of gas projects that remains as high as in the last years with. At the same time, the amount of electricity projects in the list is stagnating. This is unacceptable and incompatible with aiming at keeping global warming below 1.5 or even 2 degrees, says Frida Kieninger from Food & Water Europe.

In the objection, MEPs pointed out to the risks of investing into stranded assets since gas infrastructure constructed now is designed to last until 2060 or beyond. By then, commitments to phase out greenhouse gas emissions will have made most pipelines, compressor stations and LNG terminals irrelevant and unneeded. The PCI list, so the objection, will lock Europe into a new fossil fuel dependence if adopted in its current form and therefore it needs to be reviewed.

An objection is the only possible action for MEPs to show they are dissatisfied with the current form of the PCI list. The European Parliament and the Council can only reject the entire list, including gas and electricity projects, otherwise the list automatically enters into force since the Council already confirmed its support.

“Main aim of the objection is to align the PCI list with climate and energy targets and the Paris Agreement. It asks the Commission to draft a new list in favor of more electricity projects which are crucial to integrate renewable energy as well as other projects supporting a phase out of fossil fuels”, says Frida Kieninger. This list can’t remain serving corporate interests instead of public interest.”

This is the first time since the European Parliament is using its right of scrutiny on the PCI List. The European Commission will have to take it into account that the public will watch its every step when the next PCI List is drafted.

After today’s rejection of motion for an objection, there is still a possibility to submit the objection to the plenary. If at least 38 of the 751 Members of the European Parliament support the objection, it will likely be voted in mid-March.

 

Contact: Frida Kieninger, Food & Water Europe, Campaign Officer, Rue d’Edimbourg 26, Brussels 1050, Belgium, +32 487 24 99 05, fkieninger(at)fweurope.org

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Notes to the editor:

Motion for an Objection:

http://www.michele-rivasi.eu/assets/uploads/2018/01/PCI-Objection-20180131.pdf

Proposal for a 3rd PCI list:

https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/documents/annex_to_pci_list_final_2017_en.pdf