Our Successes
Helping to win taking ~2 bn tonnes out of the EU carbon market
Over the years we’ve been exposing just how broken the ETS policy is in Europe. This year we won crucial amendments that will remove excess tonnes from the market. Thanks to our targeted interventions the policy will kick in earlier than originally planned and around 2 bn tonnes will be taken out en masse before the end of this decade.
Exposing the extent of the EU’s coal problem
We created a unique database of power station emissions by fuel and published a landmark report illustrating just how large the EU’s coal problem is. In particular we showed how cheap coal is squeezing out much cleaner more efficient gas. Our analysis helped to stimulate an on-going conversation that is already leading to action in the UK and Germany to address their legacy of old coal with targeted policies.
Exposing carbon fat cats and exposing the extent of the growing surplus
Using our own analysis of company ownership of polluting installations we exposed, for the first time, which big companies were profiting from huge surpluses of free allocations. We received a lot of media coverage and were delighted when then Commissioner Connie Hedegaard quoted our Carbon Fat Cats work in the national media in Belgium. We’re pleased to say new rules that came in in 2013 have put most of the fat cats on a diet. However, we continue to monitor the situation carefully and will expose where there are remaining issues (did someone say cement industry?). Watch this space.
Exposing international offsets and winning a ban on certain types of credits
Using our own data analysis we were able to link for the first time where the vast number of international offsets entering the EU were coming from and which projects were generating them. We used our unique maps of emissions sources in Europe to graphically illustrate the flows. Following pressure from us and other NGOs the cheapest and biggest volume sources of offsets were banned from use in the scheme.