WWF - WWF Austria office

G20 finance ministers fail to reach green on climate financing

2009-11-07

St Andrews, Scotland – Finance ministers of the world’s dominant economies failed to reach agreement on the financing required for a global agreement to stave off catastrophic climate change, WWF said today as the G20 finance ministers meeting here broke up with no resolution to issues dividing developed and emerging economies.

The lack of progress made by the G20 in St. Andrews, follows another week of inconclusive negotiations in UN climate talks in Barcelona as the world heads towards the crucial UN climate conference in Copenhagen in a month’s time.

With the G20 now having considered the climate financing issue three times without reaching common ground, WWF remains sceptical about today's promise to make further progress before Copenhagen.

“The G20 Finance Ministers meeting turned out to be a mostly irrelevant sideshow on the way to the talks in Copenhagen in a months’ time," said Dr Richard Dixon, Director of WWF Scotland.

"Failure to come to agreement here is a major disappointment.

“This is a group that can throw money at collapsing banks but cannot find adequate figures for the far worse challenge to the global economy of a collapsing climate system."

In detail, the G20 ministers acknowledged the need to increase significantly and urgently the scale of funding but failed to make any reference to the sums required, estimated to be around $160bn a year of public financing.

They also failed to agree on new sources of funding for a climate deal, such as auctioning emissions credits and levies on aviation and shipping.

"Talk of a financial transaction tax which has the potential to raise hundreds of billions in new funding every year turned out to be a red herring without solid political support," Dr Dixon said.

The G20 agreed some principals on a mechanism to administer and distribute these funds but failed to turn these into concrete proposals and - despite last week's pledges from Europe - no new money was put on the table to help the most vulnerable countries adapt to a changing climate.

It is estimated the immediate need for the most vulnerable nations is around $10bn a year.

WWF endorsed the G20s continuing professed interest in winding back fossil fuel use subsidies, but said the group needed to focus its main attention on getting an effective global deal on climate.

“If we are to keep the planet below the danger threshold of a 2ºC temperature rise, the rich nations of the world are going to have to help developing countries follow a low-carbon development path and help them cope with the impacts of current and future climate change," Dr Dixon said.

"We wanted to see solid proposals on how the money would be raised, managed and distributed and an indication of how soon the countries most vulnerable to climate change will receive assistance. The G20 has failed to deliver and the real work will now have to be done at Copenhagen.”

Evropske škole za prirodu

2009-10-25

Beč/Illmitz, 23. oktobar 2009 – Juče je dat signal za početak drugog kruga kampanje za međunarodno školsko okruženje koju su pokrenuli WWF i ERSTE fondacija. Učenici i nastavnici iz deset evropskih zemalja su pod nazivom “Evropske škole za život planete - preduzimanje zajedničke akcije za životnu sredinu Evrope” učestvovali na otvaranju koje je održano u Austriji i tom prilikom predstavili svoje ideje za projekat očuvanja prirode baveći se temama “Ekološki trag” i “Dunav”. Cilj je da đaci realizuju svoje ideje do kraja školske godine kada će se vršiti izbor za najbolji projekat. “Tokom protekle školske godine održane su značajne aktivnosti poput kampanje pod nazivom "đaci uče đake", zatim pozorišne predstave, izložbe i ulični događaji”, izjavio je Ulrike Petschacher, vođa programa ekološkog obrazovanja u WWF Austrija. “Jedva čekamo da vidimo koje će ideje biti realizovane tokom druge runde ove kampanje.”

Trideset timova, koje čine đaci i nastavnici iz Austrije, Bugarske, Hrvatske, Češke, Mađarske, Rumunije, Srbije, Slovačke, Slovenije i Ukrajine, učestvovalo je na jednonedeljnom otvaranju koje je održano u Nacionalnom parku u Illmitz-u u austrijskoj regiji Seewinkel. Kroz radionice i aktivnosti na otvorenom, stručnjaci iz WWF-a upoznali su đake, uzrasta od 12 do 17 godina, i njihove nastavnike sa temama projekta ‘Dunav – Evropska linija života’ i ‘Ekološki trag – Globalne posledice potrošnje’.

"Glavni cilj ovogodišnjeg kruga projekta jeste ‘Aktivno građanstvo’," rekao je Petschacher. “Želimo da pokažemo đacima kako da aktivno učestvuju, izraze svoje mišljenje u javnosti i motivišu druge na učešće.” I uloga nastavnika je ove godine nešto izmenjena. Oni će pružati podršku đacima samo kao instruktori projekta, dok je sprovođenje ideja isključivo stvar đačke kreativnosti.

Napredak projekata za očuvanje prirode moći će da se prati preko javno dostupnog interaktivnog weblog-a na kojem će đaci razmenjivati iskustva i čuvati svoje dnevnike projekata, fotografije i video zapise. Đaci, nastavnici i svaki posetilac ovog sajta moći će da da svoj komentar na bilo koju projektnu aktivnost.

“ERSTE fondacija učestvuje u kampanji ‘Evropske škole za život planete’ u cilju obogaćivanja prekograničnih obrazovnih projekata sa akcentom na očuvanju životne sredine”, izjavio je Boris Marte, član Odbora ERSTE fondacije. “Podrška obrazovanju znači ozbiljno shvatanje evropske budućnosti. Razmena osećanja po pitanju ekoloških problema u okviru jednog međunarodnog projekta jeste iskustvo od trajnog značaja za omladinu i njihove nastavnike.

Iz Republike Srbije učestvovali su đaci i nastavnici iz sledećih škola:

"Ivo Andrić" - Beograd
"Drinka Pavlović" - Beograd
"Milan Rakić" - Medoševac

Za detaljnije informacije posetite www.foralivingplanet.eu

Kontakt:
Mag. (FH) Lisa Simon, WWF predstavnik za štampu, Tel.: +43-1-488 17 215, mob.: +43 676 83 488 215, e-mail: lisa.simon@wwf.at
Mag. Maribel Königer, ERSTE fondacija, Tel.: +43-50100-15453, mob.: +43-50100-615453,
e-mail: maribel.koeniger@erstestiftung.org

NGOs join forces to save a living Danube threatened by inland navigation plans

2009-10-09

“Inland navigation can be considered as a viable alternative to road freight only if both global CO2 emissions and local impacts on river ecosystems are considered equally”, says Orieta Hulea, Head of Freshwater at the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme. “Navigation projects that require regulation of the river bed and bank impede the multitude of services, free flowing rivers provide to society, such as drinking water supply, flood control, acting as a natural filter for pollutants or support of healthy fisheries. These aspects must be considered when discussing transport plans and projects. Otherwise in areas like the Danube environmental damages risks are higher than benefits”.

As part of the European TEN-T programme, infrastructure projects are planned for the Danube on a combined length of 1000 km including the last free-flowing stretches in Germany, the Danube National Park between Vienna and Bratislava, and large stretches of the middle and lower Danube in Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.

Current plans in Hungary would affect groundwater supply and natural areas protected under national and international law. Proposed dredging works and closing of lateral arms on the Danube in Romania will endanger the fish population due to the loss of the main spawning grounds especially for sturgeons, which are already on the brink of extinction as a direct consequence of previous river regulation.

With more than 80 million people depending directly on the economic value of its river basin natural systems, the Danube is the lifeline of Europe. “In every village and town along the Danube farmers, fishermen and small companies are depending on the natural river eco-system,” reminds Harald Kutzenberger, IAD General Secretary. “We should not easily risk thousands of local jobs along the Danube as a result of gaps in the Environmental Impact Assessments – and loose the strong potential for eco-tourism and rural development.”

NGOs are calling for the EU and national governments to guarantee and regain functioning ecosystem processes, respect socio-economic needs of regional and local economies, and prove that navigation projects meet all legal requirements, in particular compliance with the non-deterioration clause of the European Union’s Water Framework Directive (hereafter WFD) as well as achievement of the environmental objectives of the Danube River Basin Management Plan and Natura 2000 sites.

For further information:
Orieta Hulea, Head of Freshwater, WWF Danube Carpathian Programme, Tel. + 40 21 3174996,
E-mail: ohulea(at)wwfdcp.ro

Harald Kutzenberger, General Secretary, International Association for Danube Research, Tel. +43 676 328 33 12, e-mail: kutzenberger(at)iad.gs

Danube Day -- fears amidst the celebrations

2009-06-28

Amidst the celebrations of this year's Danube Day on June 29, WWF is concerned about persisting threats to the Danube as a living river. Government and EU plans to remove “bottlenecks” for navigation could impact up to 1,000 km of the river’s most natural sections, and threaten to violate the non-deterioration clause of the EU Water Framework Directive.

Plans by the Romanian government to improve navigation between Calarasi and Braila on the Lower Danube could severely impact sturgeon migration routes, possibly pushing the already threatened fish species into extinction. WWF has tabled alternative solutions that would facilitate navigation while limiting negative impacts.

EU plans for developing the Danube as a major shipping corridor have called for the removal of "bottlenecks" on up to 1,000 km of the river's length. Traditional approaches to improving navigation involving damming, diking and dredging could have disastrous effects on the river, its natural goods and services.

WWF will present these and other concerns at public consultations on the Danube River Basin Management Plan that is being organized by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River in Bratislava on June 29-30.

The consultations are taking place within the framework of the EU Water Framework Directive, which calls for all rivers, lakes and coasts to achieve ‘good ecological status’ by 2015. European citizens have a key role to play in implementing the directive, which calls for the public to be informed and involved in the preparation of river basin management plans.

WWF has developed alternatives for promoting shipping while limiting damage to the Danube as a living river. The focus should first be on measures such as improved ship technology and logistics that do not require major changes to the river. Only after such alternatives are exhausted should much more expensive and non-reversible river modifications come into consideration.

WWF is also calling for increased attention to floodplain restoration in the Danube basin as a key measure for addressing climate change and securing ecosystem services, such as flood protection, drinking water provisioning and biodiversity.

According to a WWF commissioned study, the potential for floodplain restoration is much higher than countries have indicated in the draft river basin managment plan. Floodplains provide multiple benefits for humans and nature, securing a range of ecosystem services from flood protection to replenishing drinking water. Protecting and restoring floodplains can make a major and cost-effective contribution to addressing the challenge of climate change.

Romania has ambitious plans to restore over 400,000 ha of Danube floodplains, but work toward this ambitious goal is not planned before 2015.

Contact:
Andreas Beckmann, WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme, +43 676 84 27 28 216

WWF gives Europe a roadmap to Copenhagen

2009-02-27

Brussels, Belgium: With a series of critical European Union meetings on a new global climate deal about to begin, WWF has set out what Europe needs to do to grow in a green way while contributing to helping the world avoid passing the 2 degree threshold of warming that presents unacceptable risks of catastrophic climate change.

“There is a clear link to be made between ambitious climate policies and a new phase of economic growth,” said Stephan Singer, Director of Energy Programme at WWF International.

“The recent financial bailouts prove that when governments decide to fix a problem, money and regulatory instruments are there. There is no excuse to treat the climate crisis with less support and attention.”

The WWF roadmap to a successful new global agreement in Copenhagen in December would see Europe radically strengthen its announced commitments of cutting emissions by just 20 per cent by 2020 and 50 per cent by 2050.

European environment ministers will consider target developed and undeveloped country emissions to take to Copenhagen at Monday’s EU Environment Council meeting in Brussels.

Commit to zero net emissions

Based on various studies, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenarios, WWF says that emissions will have to be reduced by at least 80 percent by 2050 globally to keep warming below 2°C. In compliance with its fair share of responsibility, the EU must commit to net zero emissions by 2050.

The IPCC also said that industrial countries will have to reduce their greenhouse gases by between 25 and 40% by 2020. The current EU target is only 20%, with a possibility to increase to 30% if other developed nations will join an international agreement.

These targets are clearly at the lower end of the IPCC scale, and even lower in reality considering that EU countries are allowed to fulfil up to two thirds of their commitment by way of certificates for projects in developing countries (the so-called CDM credits).

At the forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin) meeting on Tuesday March 10, European finance ministers will consider both the plan to boost economic recovery in Europe and financing climate protection measures.

WWF said Ecofin must come to grips with the fact that so far EU countries have failed to seriously face the challenge and to see the opportunities created by a greener economy.

Today, the fossil fuel energy sector in the EU-15 countries still receives about €20 billion of subsidies, equal to 0.2% Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Europe imports about 4.8 billion barrels of oil per year, equal to 3% of GDP. Natural gas imports are another 3% of GDP.

According to the European Commission, between 600,000 and 900,000 jobs can be created by renewable energy by 2020, compared to today’s 150,000 jobs. As a comparison, the cement and the steel sectors – some of those crying wolf about strong climate measure – employ about 60,000 and 300,000 people respectively.

With finance to developing countries being touted as a make or break issue at Copenhagen, WWF is calling for European contributions for clean technology and reduced deforestation in developing countries to
amount to €35 billion per year, in addition to the long-time promised 0.7% GDP for development aid.

Funding of climate protection measures (avoidance, adaptation and forest protection) needs to be sustainable, predictable and controlled in a transparent manner by the international community.

The European Commission’s current proposal also fails to address the enormous potential of energy efficiency, with an almost complete lack of concrete proposals for technology co-operation.

WWF says that the EU financing of technology development and research should be increased by a factor of 10 compared to current levels by 2020, particularly for renewable energies, energy efficiency and carbon capture and storage (CCS).

The EU should also promote the setting up of a technology action programme under the UNFCCC to protect intellectual property rights and promote innovation.

Outcomes from the Ecofin and Environment Council meetings are scheduled to be considered by EU Heads of State at a European Council meeting on Thursday 19th and Friday 20th March. Some issues however may carry over to when Sweden assumes the presidency of the EU

Slippery slope ahead for ski resorts in Central and Eastern Europe

2009-01-13

New research suggests that ambitious plans for dozens of new ski resorts in Central and Eastern Europe could be constructed on slippery financial slopes.

The potential financial uncertainty on the future viability of the resorts is also adding to concerns that some of Europe’s last wilderness areas will be damaged to little purpose.

Up to two-thirds of Alpine ski areas could go out of business due to a lack of snow on current climate change projections, which see temperature rises of between 2 and 5.2 degrees Celsius in coming decades, research from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has suggested.

The WWF report suggests that a similar fate may be in store for proposed and ongoing developments in Central and Eastern Europe, and that the cost of these white elephants will be greater than just financial.

In Romania alone, 102 resorts or developments have been planned, and a project in Ukraine is looking to develop into one of Europe’s largest ski resorts, with 100,000 beds and 66 lifts at a total cost of some €3 billion.

“Construction of ski facilities removes large areas of forest to make way for ski pistes, access roads and infrastructure, reducing and fragmenting habitat for wildlife,” said Andreas Beckman, Deputy Director of WWF’s Danube-Carpathian programme.

“It is irresponsible for governments to not only allow but actively support such damage when there is very likely no economic future for these resorts.” Many of the ski development projects rely on very significant funding from state and EU sources.

“If the real reason is a very short term bonanza of chalet speculation then it will be an economic, environmental and social tragedy,” Beckmann concluded.

Most proposed ski resort projects for Central and Eastern Europe are located at below 1500 meters above sea level, a threshold considered in the Alps to be the lowest point at which a ski resort can be currently considered viable in terms of snowfall for skiing.

The Carpathian Mountains where many of the ski areas are planned is home to over half of Europe’s largest remaining populations of brown bears, wolves and lynxes. Ancient beech forests stretching from Slovakia to Ukraine are among Europe’s last remaining natural forests and were recently listed as a World Heritage Site.

Some ski developments are illegal as well as unwise; a number of Bulgarian projects are being built in protected areas including Rila and Pirin National Parks. Governments are not necessarily at the forefront of enforing their own laws, either. Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev opened an illegally constructed ski lift in September.

In Romania, a state programme plans for construction of ski areas in eight of the country’s national parks, including Retezat and Piatra Craiului, the country’s flagship protected areas.

A common problem with ski developments throughout the region are the poor quality of many environmental impacts assessments, many of which do not meet EU standards.

Ski resorts with only short term prospects of natural snow also raise significant cost and environmental concerns if they try to keep themselves going with artificial snow, the report found.

The 3,100 snow cannons around Europe, designed to maintain the quality of ski slopes, consume some 260,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) worth of electricity annually. This is an amount that could power a city of 150,000 people for a year.

“The least responsible thing that public authorities can do is to ensure that the economic aspects of ski resort development justify the environmental damage,” Beckmann said.

“Much better would be working out how countries and communities can get long term value from their environmental assets without destroying them.”

Click here to access the WWF study "White Elephants in the Green Mountains: Ski develompents in Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia and Ukraine" (1.76 MB).

Contact:
Andreas Beckmann, Deputy Director, WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme, Mobile: +43 676 84 27 28 216

Tuna commission comes up with "a disgrace, not a decision"

2008-11-24

Marrakech, Morocco - The commission tasked with preventing a collapse of the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery today opted for catch quotas still far higher than its own scientists recommend and leaving industrial fleets free to scoop up tuna at the height of its spawning period.

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), meeting in Marrakech, Morocco, for the past week, brushed aside its own review’s description of its management of the bluefin fishery as “an international disgrace” to endorse a total allowable catch (TAC) of 22,000 tonnes for next year.

ICCAT’s own scientists had recommended a TAC ranging 8,500 to 15,000 tonnes per year, warning there were real risks of the fishery collapsing otherwise. The scientists also urged a seasonal closure during the fragile spawning months of May and June, while today’s outcome allows industrial fishing in practice up to 20 June.

“This is not a decision, it is a disgrace which leaves WWF little choice but to look elsewhere to save this fishery from itself,” said Dr Sergi Tudela, head of WWF Mediterranean’s fisheries programme, speaking from Marrakech.

“Any alternative is preferable to an organization which boasts of its respect for science but where in a decade catches have gone from twice to four times the scientific recommendations, with massive legal and illegal overfishing. It is clear that the only thing to slow the fishery with ICCAT at the helm is running out of fish.”

The European Union drove today’s decision, supported by Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt and Syria and later joined by Japan.

Japan had initially been party to a US, Canada, Mexico, Norway, Iceland and Brazil proposal, supported by a brace of developing nations, to fix the allowed catch at the upper levels recommended by scientists and closing the fishery for the full spawning period.

The debate has been marred by allegations of the European Commission threatening developing state members with trade retaliations should they support lower catch limits and extended closed seasons, with the names of some nations appearing and disappearing from the more scientifically-based proposals.

“ICCAT’s string of successive failures leaves us little option now but to seek effective remedies through trade measures and extending the boycott of retailers, restaurants, chefs and consumers,” Dr Tudela said.
WWF has been urging a suspension of the out-of-control fishery, an option endorsed by the recent World Conservation Congress and recommended by ICCAT’s own internal high-level review.

The world’s largest bluefin tuna trader, Mitsubishi, signalled earlier in November that it would “reassess” its “involvement in this business” should ICCAT continue to be unable to sustainably manage the fishery.

“WWF will also actively push for a listing under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in the hope that stringent trade controls tied explicitly to the survival of the species will turn around the half-hearted attempt at fisheries management shown here by ICCAT and especially its European contingent.”

CITES next meets in Doha in January 2010 with submissions on listings required by August 2009.
“Today’s outcome is a recipe for economic as well as biological bankruptcy with the European Union squarely to blame,” said Dr Tudela.

“Bluefin consumption in the main consumer market of Japan is expected to drop from 18,000 tonnes due to the economic crisis, with around 30,000 tonnes of frozen bluefin already in Hong Kong and Japan and additional unknown amounts in other Asian countries and in freezer ships.

“Our industry sources also tell us that there are 7,000 tonnes of illegally fished tuna in fattening cages across the Mediterranean that nobody wants to buy.”

The moratorium option, which the scientific panel said would lead to the quickest recovery in bluefin stock and the best future prospects for fulfilling ICCAT’s charter of delivering a long-term sustainable fishery, was not even given consideration by the commission in Marrakech despite increasing support for this option from European fishermen.

Europe sits on damning bluefin tuna report

2008-11-14

Barcelona, Spain: A European fisheries report demonstrating continuing widespread infringements by bluefin tuna fleets despite increased fleet surveillance in the Mediterranean has been delayed until after the conclusion of next week's key international tuna commission meeting to decide on a new management regime for the fishery.

The existence of the report, revealed today by The Economist, undermines Europe's promise of support for strong action possibly including temporary closure of the fishery at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) meeting in Marrakech, Morocco.

It also undermines European claims that it is bringing rampant bluefin overfishing under control, with a summary hurriedly produced after repeated demands from the European Parliament noting that extensive consultations with fishers and improved surveillance and inspections had little effect on the low priority industry gave to ICCAT rules.

“After decades of ignoring the science, ICCAT and member states are now trying to outdo each other in rhetoric about how much the science must matter,” said Dr Sergi Tudela, Fisheries director for WWF Mediterranean.

“The information gathered by Europe’s Community Fisheries Control Agency provides unprecedented data on the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery that would have been extremely precious for ICCAT scientists to make appropriate management recommendations.

“Shockingly, this valuable information has been kept hidden from scientists, thus undermining the quality of fisheries management advice – and the European Community, representing all EU Members States at ICCAT, must be held responsible for this.”

Earlier this year, WWF welcomed Europe's promise of vastly improved inspection and surveillance of the bluefin fleet and fattening farms by the CFCA, based in Vigo, Spain.

The Economist claims that a comprehensive CFCA report - the product of a €20 million investment in seeking to reign in the bluefin fishery - went to the European Commission in August and that an abbreviated version only was provided to the European Parliament’s Fisheries Commission earlier this month.

The abbreviated version is alarming enough, noting that “the level of apparent infringements detected in the tugs and the purse seiner fleet is considerable”, “the (illegal) use of spotter planes for searching bluefin tuna concentrations is still wide spread” and “as regards the recording and reporting of bluefin tuna catches . . . the ICCAT rules have not been generally respected”.

European Fisheries Commissioner Joe Borg has said that the last management rules for this beleaguered fishery – agreed at a previous ICCAT meeting in Dubrovnik in 2006 – would work, as long as there was compliance with the rules.

“This latest evidence of widespread non-compliance, information that has been hidden from ICCAT scientists and decision-makers, should be case enough that the only solution now is to close the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery – pending a complete overhaul of the fiasco,” Dr Tudela said.

Spain, Japan back bluefin tuna ban

2008-10-13

Barcelona, Spain: Key fishing state Spain and key tuna market Japan joined with a majority of other countries to back closing the Mediterranean Bluefin Tuna fishery until it can be brought under control and establishing protected areas in the main breeding grounds.

The surprise vote tonight, by government and NGO members of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) at the World Conservation Congress in Barcelona, also calls for catch quotas to be nearly halved in line with scientific advice and for permanent fishing bans for May and June covering the entire spawning season.

“We didn't know this would pass, let alone pass so overwhelmingly,” said Dr Sergi Tudela, Head of Fisheries in WWF’s Mediterranean office. “Common sense is now promising to bring an end to the real shame in the international system of fisheries management .

“The message that we need to close the fishery now or have few fish and no fishery into the future is now coming from scientists, from consumers, from communities and from countries.”

The motion adds considerably to the pressure on International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) which decides on the future of the fishery in November, within two months of its own internal expert review labelling the management of the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery “an international disgrace”.

It also follows a WWF report earlier this year that the tuna fishing capacity was at twice quota levels and a further report last week that Italy's largely unregulated fleet was in flagrant violation of the fishery rules.

Last month, ICCAT scientists also warned the Mediterranean Bluefin Tuna population was on the brink of collapse. A retailers' boycott of Mediterranean Bluefin Tuna, supported by WWF, is spreading throughout Europe.

The tuna motion, initially bitterly opposed by some countries that later voted for it, was put up by WWF, Ecologistas en Acción, GOB, SEO/Birdlife and the Government of the Baleric Islands, which is proposed as one of the bluefin tuna sanctuaries.

“ICCAT needs to heed the claim from the international community to save the Mediterannean Bluefin Tuna,” Dr Tudela said.

“This year's meeting will be the last real chance for ICCAT to show to the world it deserves the mandate given by society to manage this fisheries and avoid the collapse of the species.”

Danube getting cleaner

2008-10-02

The findings of the second Joint Danube Survey, which were announced by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River on September 11, confirm that the cooperation among Danube countries to reduce pollution is bringing positive results. Progress has been made in many areas since the Joint Danube Survey 1 of 2001.

Water quality is generally improving, but more work is needed. People can swim in parts of the Danube River Basin, but not everywhere. People can eat fish without health risk, but further investigation of mercury concentrations is needed in some areas.

The Danube still contains significant natural populations of plants and animals. The first ever systematic survey of the river’s “hydromorphology” (the physical characteristics of its shape, boundaries and content) identified large areas that remain in good natural condition. Positive efforts that have been made to restore damaged natural areas, such as floodplains near Vienna and in the Danube Delta, need to continue if a good ecological condition of the river is to be achieved everywhere.

At the same time, the survey confirms that a further reduction of nutrients and organic pollution is needed. The Danube continues to show signs of degradation downstream of major cities and in a number of important tributaries because of poor municipal waste treatment. Efforts to establish waste water treatment plants in the basin, particularly in cities such as Budapest, Belgrade and Bucharest, need to be accelerated. Some countries need to intensify the pollution control efforts by industry on major tributaries. Overall, the reduction of pollution from agriculture (both nutrients and pesticides) must continue. Some toxic hot-spots also require more active attention.

Areas for further research and investigation were also identified. This includes levels of mercury in some samples, particularly in fish, as well as the sources of pollutants in some tributaries. The large number of non-native fish and other organisms in the Danube also require further assessment.

“More intensive discussions with stakeholders - such as the navigation and agriculture sectors, hydropower and the detergent industry - about measures to reduce particular pressures are needed,” said ICPDR Executive Secretary Philip Weller. “The cooperative climate that exists among many stakeholders for addressing the problems needs to be maintained.”

"The results of the latest Danube Survey underlines the progress that has been made in cleaning up the Danube as well as the qualities of the river that still exist," said Michael Baltzer, head of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme. "In addition to addressing remaining problems, we need to ensure that current EU and national plans to develop the Danube for shipping don't undermine the very substantial progress that has been already achieved."

Contacts:
Paul Csagoly, ICPDR Secretariat
Andreas Beckmann, WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme

Stronger European climate action could have €25 billion health benefit

2008-10-01

Brussels, Belgium – Health savings of up to €25 billion could be achieved every year in Europe if the European Union immediately opted for stronger climate policies, says a new study published by health and environment NGOs..

The report. The Co-benefits to Health of a Strong EU Climate Change Policy, analyses the health benefits of reduced climate pollution if the EU increased its 2020 target for domestic greenhouse gas emission cuts from 20 to 30 per cent without any delay.

The study was commissioned by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), Climate Action Network Europe (CAN-E) and WWF.

The findings show that raising the target to 30 per cent, in line with recommendations of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), would produce savings resulting from better health valued at between €6.5-25 billion per year.

The estimates are based on economic evaluations of loss of life and health, working days lost and hospital costs. The findings show reductions in hospital admissions of 8,000 per year, and two million fewer work days lost per year by moving to the higher 30 per cent target.

These health savings are over and above the benefits of the EU’s existing scenario of a 20 per cent target. The report shows that raising the target to 30 per cent would increase the savings by €25 billion, or 48 per cent, from €51-76 billion.

“Until now the discussion on climate change has been all about costs to industry and the economy, while costs of climate pollution to society have largely been neglected,” said Delia Villagrasa, Senior Advisor to WWF’s European Policy Office.

“It is essential to see that measures to promote cleaner sources of energy and reduce fossil fuel consumption will not only contribute to control climate change but will also cut air pollution and improve quality of life for European citizens.”

Rivers of sound - Audio interview with Hubert von Goisern

2008-05-07

Last summer, Austrian musician Hubert von Goisem took to a barge to bring his music and environmental message to the people who live along the Danube. Now he is planning a similar concert tour along the Rhine. Andreas Beckman, from WWF’s Danube Carpathian programme, asked him why.

Link to Danube Campaign.

Bloated Mediterranean tuna fleet in race for the last bluefin

2008-03-12

Rome, Italy – The most comprehensive analysis yet of the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fleet shows it conservatively having twice the fishing capacity of current quotas and more than three and a half times the catch levels recommended by scientists to avoid stock collapse.

The fleet is so bloated that just covering its costs implies that a third of its fishing would be illegal, with the worst over-capacity culprits being Turkey, Italy, Croatia, Libya, France and Spain.

The new WWF report, Race for the last bluefin, "uncovers the absurdity of a system long out of control, where hundreds of hi-tech boats are racing to catch a handful of fish,” said Dr Sergi Tudela, Head of Fisheries at WWF Mediterranean.

“The failure of international fisheries management has allowed a monster to thrive in the Mediterranean. Decision-makers must be bold if the bluefin is to be saved from a sorry fate – and for any chance of a future for Mediterranean tuna fishermen.”

To keep fishing capacity within the 2008 legal catch limits imposed by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), the Mediterranean fleet would need to shed 229 vessels – almost a third of the current 617-vessel fleet.

Reducing fishing effort to scientifically recommended levels, meanwhile, would require decommissioning 283 vessels, including 58 in European Union Member States.

In Italy – worst culprit among EU countries – the fleet should be reduced by over 30 vessels to respect scientific recommendations, or 17 just to stay within the law. The WWF report indicates that high levels of under-reporting by Italy are also likely, as its reported catches have dramatically decreased since 1997 – yet during the past decade the Italian fleet has increased considerably in size and power. Croatia, Spain and Libya are also under the spotlight for under-reporting.

At a minimum, the report shows Mediterranean fleets would have to fish 42,000 tonnes of tuna just to cover costs – implying some 13,000 tonnes of illegal catch. This calculation considers only the more technically advanced vessels built in the past decade – the full picture will be much worse yet.

“It is crazy – the numerous new fleets are so modern and costly that fishermen are forced to fish illegally just to survive – and worse still they are fishing themselves out of a job,” added Dr Tudela.

WWF is calling on concerned countries to dramatically reduce capacity in this fishery as a matter of urgency ahead of the 2008 fishing season that starts end-April. WWF also urges ICCAT, the body tasked with sustainably managing the fishery, to take a lead in proposing radical solutions. Until the fishery is under control and sustainably managed, WWF continues to advocate a fishing ban – and to applaud responsible retailers, restaurants, chefs and consumer groups who are boycotting Mediterranean bluefin in increasing numbers.

“The fishery is unsustainable in every way – economically, socially, and ecologically. The time to act is now – while there are still bluefin tuna to save in the Mediterranean,” Dr Tudela said.

In spite of the overcapacity of fleets, at least 25 new purse seine vessels were still being constructed at time of going to press.

This time, world should heed OECD call to action on environment

2008-03-05

Paris: The OECD’s Environment Outlook to 2030, issued today, was welcomed by WWF as yet another compelling argument that the costs of inaction on the environment will far exceed the costs of action.

The OECD Outlook is the latest - and at 520 pages one of the weightiest - in a run of reports from prominent economic institutions and commissions calling on governments and international institutions to face up to the seriousness and immediacy of global environmental problems.

“When a body such as the OECD says that on a range of environmental issues we need to act globally and we need to act now, then it is clear that as communities, countries and companies we need to roll up our collective sleeves and get on with it,” said WWF International Director General James Leape.

“It is sobering to think how much better off we would be today if the world, the wealthy world in particular, had heeded OECD's 2001 call to take action on many of these same issues. We should not make the same mistake again.”

James Leape said the OECD outlook should be commended for looking beyond the urgent challenge of climate change to other urgent issues of biodiversity loss, mismanagment of water resources and escalating health threats. WWF also welcomed OECD’s call to prioritise action in the key sectors of energy, transport, agriculture and fisheries.

“The OECD outlook underlines both the magnitude of the largely self-inflicted threats we face and the urgency of acting effectively on them,” said James Leape. “It is rapidly becoming the case that it will be as hard to find a sceptical economist as it is now to find a sceptical scientist."

While generally supporting market liberalisation, the OECD noted that in the absence of “sound environmental policy and institutional frameworks” globalisation “can amplify market and policy failures and intensify environmental pressures”.

The OECD repeated its 2001 call for the removal of subsidies to environmentally harmful activities, with special mention of subsidies to fossil fuel use, agricultural production subsidies, fishing overcapacity subsidies and the subsidy and underpricing of damaging transport modes.

The OECD also repeated that environment policy should not be just a concern of environment ministers, but has to be elevated into being a priority of central and economic policy making in particular.

“There is now no reason not to act," said James Leape. "The OECD outlook is emphatic that the policies and technologies to address urgent environment issues are available and affordable, that taking them will increase efficiencies and reduce costs and that the earlier we take action, the better the cost-benefit equation will be.”

Media release and contact details

HP commits to further GHG emissions reductions in joining WWF Climate Savers

2008-02-13

HP, one of the world's largest IT companies, has pledged to reduce the emissions from its own operations and the use of its products to 6 million tonnes (20%) below 2005 levels by 2010.

Progress towards this goal, a commitment entered into in joining the World Wildlife Fund/WWF Climate Savers program, has been so significant that HP is now looking to define new goals.

In energy terms, HP has now committed itself to reduce energy consumption by 15 percent in its operations from 2005 levels, while achieving a 25 % reduction in the energy used by its products and operations combined below 2005 levels by 2010. Even with an increase in revenues, total energy use was down 19.2 % below 2005 levels by October 2007.

“WWF commends HP for its strong commitment to energy reductions—not only within its own operations, but in placing a strong emphasis on increasing energy efficiency in its products,” said Carter Roberts, WWF-US President and CEO. “HP’s bold actions should serve as a model for other technology companies seeking to transform the way they do business to help protect the planet.”

“HP has been an environmentally-sensitive company for decades; it’s simply part of our culture and DNA,” said Mark Hurd, Chairman and CEO, HP. “We take a leadership role in climate change initiatives like WWF Climate Savers, and we will continue to seek innovative ways to reduce our carbon footprint."

HP’s announcement comes as companies from around the world gathered to discuss business strategies to reduce climate change at the Climate Savers Tokyo Summit. During the summit, HP said it will sign the Tokyo Declaration – a call to action and renewed commitment on global warming.

Between 1987 and 2007, HP recycled one billion pounds of its products, representing 900,000 tonnes of avoided greenhouse gas emissions, and it set a new goal to recover another one billion pounds by the end of 2010.

HP made further progress in January 2008 when it announced a commitment to reduce the energy consumption of its volume desktop and notebook PC families by 25 percent by 2010, and today it is working to consolidate its 85 data centers worldwide into six data centers with high-efficiency servers and cooling technology.

Beginning in 2006, HP embarked on a joint initiative with World Wildlife Fund-US to establish an absolute reduction target for greenhouse gas emissions from HP’s operating facilities worldwide, explore efficiency goals for products, educate and inspire others to adopt best practices for climate change initiatives and use HP technology in conservation efforts around the world by 2010.

WWF’s Climate Savers was founded in 1999 and currently comprises 15 major international companies committed to reducing their total emissions by over 10 million tons of carbon dioxide per year.

In its first attendance at a WWF Climate Savers Conference - this year starting on 15 January hosted by Sony Corporation in Tokyo - HP is expected to join other leading global brands calling for more concerted action on climate change.

Join retailers’ Mediterranean bluefin tuna boycott, urges WWF

2008-01-28

As more and more major European retailers boycott Mediterranean Bluefin Tuna, WWF used the occasion of the Barcelona Seafood Summit to call on more to join the ban until the imperilled species is out of the danger zone.

France's Auchan group, with a nearly 14 per cent share of the retail fish trade, declared its boycott on 28 December, noting that scientists had advised a 15,000 tonne ceiling on annual catches, while the international tuna management body was allowing a 2008 quota of 29,500 tonnes.

"Moreover, each year, captures greatly exceed the fixed quotas," Auchan said in a statement outlining how the ban had been taken in line with its policy of pursuing a sustainable trade in fish.

“WWF applauds Auchan in France, Carrefour in Italy, Coop in both Italy and Switzerland, and ICA in Norway for their courageous decisions to stop selling Mediterranean bluefin tuna – and we urge other retailers to follow suit,” says Dr Sergi Tudela, Head of Fisheries at WWF Mediterranean.

“The seafood industry is waking up to its responsibilities, recognising that there is not an endless supply of fish like bluefin tuna. By taking action now, retailers can help give this amazing species a fighting chance of survival, for the benefit of both business and the marine ecosystem.”

Scientists have declared it “probable” that populations of the magnificent bluefin tuna, much prized especially for sushi in Japan, will soon collapse in the Mediterranean – unless action is taken now.

Before retailers started taking matters into their own hands, WWF had suggested to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) meeting in November that contracting countries agree on a 3-year ban on bluefin tuna fishing, but this move was rejected.

Following massive demand in recent years – especially from Japan where Atlantic bluefin is prized for Sushi – high-tech fishing fleets have hunted down, often illegally, ever-declining numbers of these migratory ocean giants.

WWF exposed the drastically out-of-control nature of the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery in the 2007 season when illegal fishing was again rife – including the use of banned spotter planes, as well as widespread unreporting. According to WWF sources, the Spanish authorities, for example, officially declared only two thirds of the nation’s catch last year.

“Fisheries management has gone completely off the rails – the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery is now a dangerous game in which clearly all sides will lose,” Dr Tudela said. “That’s why WWF is urging retailers to stand up for sustainable fish.”

Gemma Parkes
Communications Officer
WWF Mediterranean Programme Office
Tel: +39 06 844 97 224
Fax: +39 06 841 3866
gparkes@wwfmedpo.org
www.panda.org/mediterranean

Growing Concern as Danube Modification Projects move Forward

2008-01-04

In December 2007, representatives of Danube governments, the European Commission, navigation lobbies and a small group of Danube advocates including WWF agreed to a common vision for the future of navigation on the Danube that could be acceptable to all sides.

A number of ongoing cases should soon reveal whether agreed principles on paper are taken seriously and observed in reality. As a new year begins, we present an update on where things stand for the Danube as a living river.

Danube sturgeon hanging by a thread
One important test will be implementation of a navigation project on the Danube between the towns of Calarasi and Braila in Romania to be funded through the EU’s ISPA fund.

The Romanian government has sought to present the project as “good practice” in environmentally-friendly navigation development; WWF and others have begged to differ, pointing to the fact that the planned construction would unnecessarily cut off important migration routes for Danube sturgeon and destroy highly valuable nature areas.

Far from good practice, the project would set the worst precedent both for navigation as well as other projects funded by EU tax payers, as it goes against EU legislation including the Water Framework and Habitats Directives, while the Environmental Impact Assessment undertaken for the project is far below accepted standards.

The European Commission has reacted to the concerns of WWF and other experts and has challenged the environmental sustainability of the project. Although construction work was supposed to start in early 2008, the European Commission and the Romanian Ministry of Transport have agreed on a six month period to discuss the project’s design and its impact on the environment and possibly revise it. Final decisions are expected to be made in January 2008.

Meanwhile, a second project to be funded through the EU’s ISPA programme is moving forward not far away on the Lower Danube between Romania and Bulgaria. Preparations are moving forward for a project to improve navigation, including areas around Belene and Batin Islands that are especially valuable for birds and other species.

Hungarian Danube in the balance
Another cliffhanger for the future of the Danube is in Hungary, where the government is now considering alternatives for improving conditions for navigation on the country's 380 km stretch of the river. While neither of the options that are being considered include construction of dams, they both still focus too much on fitting the river to the ships rather than pursuing other less destructive, and less expensive, alternatives.

The Hungarian government’s decision is expected to come in January 2008. WWF and partners are concerned by the government’s plans to move forward more or less in parallel with project preparation as well as both strategic and environmental impact assessment – according to EU and Hungarian law (and logic), plans must be assessed before moving on to detailed project development and evaluation. Construction is currently expected to begin by 2010.

Wien-Bratislava moving forward
Moving furthest ahead toward implementation are plans for the Danube section between Wien and Bratislava flowing through the Danube Floodplain National Park. The Environmental Impact Assessment for the project has been published and is open for consultation until the end of January 2008.

The project to a certain extent represents a compromise between the interests of shipping and the environment, with deepening of the river channel as well as directing water to the floodplains of the national park, which have been slowly drying out. WWF and others however are concerned about the great depth that is planned for the river channel, which will set a precedent for river regulation further downstream.

In the meantime, Bavarian plans to build dams on the last free-flowing section of the Danube in Germany between Straubing and Vilshofen suffered a setback in the last months. German Federal Ministers for Transport and Environment have emphasized that only improvement of navigation through river regulation – without construction of dams – is an option.

Bystroye Canal stopped for now
There have also been developments related to the future of the Danube outside the EU in Ukraine. Here a step forward has finally been made in longstanding efforts to stop construction of the so-called Bystroye Canal through the core area of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve in Ukraine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In November, the Ukrainian Supreme Court ruled to annul decisions of all lower commercial courts that had permitted removal of an area of territory from the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve in order to facilitate construction of the canal. The court’s decision has not saved the day, but does buy some time for the Danube Delta.

Help us send a signal to decision makers to keep the Danube as a living river -- sign our petition.

Send us an email if you would like to receive occasional updates from the Danube campaign.

Danube dialogue brings together environmentalists and navigation lobby

2007-12-06

Navigation on the Danube is always a balancing act between economic and environmental interests. Some reason for hope is given by a joint statement that was elaborated by navigation and environmental experts and adopted by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) yesterday. Specialists of different governments and stakeholder interests – including WWF – developed sustainable planning concepts that equally consider use and protection of the Danube.

WWF appreciates and has actively supported the dialogue process. "The outcome of the dialogue represents a compromise, with both sides not fully satisfied with the results, but we have reached quite some remarkable results”, said Dr. Christine Bratrich, freshwater expert for the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme.

From an environmental point of view, the most important sentence in the entire paper refers to the definition of adequate fairway conditions. It was jointly decided to use a case by case approach which considers both, ecological requirements for river sections and strategic requirements of inland waterway traffic at a basin-wide scale when deciding on adequate fairway width and draft. The statement clearly opposes a minimum draft of 2.5 meters for the entire length of the Danube, preferred by the navigation sector.

“The navigation sector has clearly qualified their calls for a minimum depth of 2.5 along the entire stretch of the Danube with a clear commitment to exceptions”, highlighted Dr. Bratrich. “This is an agreement that gives hope for customized solutions and, above all, includes the ecological requirements of the different Danube stretches”.

Based on the joint statement, a basin-wide concept can be developed, that frees itself from the picture of a uniform canal. “This will be especially important for Danube sections like the Bavarian stretch between Straubing and Vilshofen”, noted Dr. Bratrich. This stretch could become a crucial acid test for the joint statement. Ecological considerations could provide grounds for stopping currrent plans for construction of dams on this stretch of the river.

The success of the joint statement remains to be seen. The real value of the dialogue process will be measured with regard to the final outcomes of ongoing and future navigation projects.

“It would be unacceptable if the document that was painstakingly agreed between different interests on the Danube is not respected in practice”, emphasized Dr. Bratrich.

It is important that people along the Danube can see our work’s influence on critical infrastructure projects too -- projects like the ones planned or nearly implemented in Bavaria, Hungary or Romania.

"We now need to walk the talk – time will tell how sustainable the collaboration of the different stakeholders was”.

For further information:

Dr. Christine Bratrich, WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme Tel: +43 1 524 5470 18

Danube Campaign: http://www.danubecampaign.org/index.cfm (German and English)

Music for a living Danube

2007-09-25

By Eva Neumeier*

Celebrated Austrian musician Hubert von Goisern, known for his popular Alpine-inspired world music, travelled the entire length of the Danube River this summer, performing 21 concerts in ten countries from a converted barge.

The concert series down the 2,780-kilometre river — the largest in the European Union — was part of WWF’s campaign to raise awareness about planned development projects that could destroy as much as 1,000km of the river’s most valuable areas and push Danube sturgeon towards the brink of extinction.

The WWF-led Danube campaign joined von Goisern’s Linz Europa Tour 2007 at many of the stops, collecting signatures for a petition that calls on EU governments and decision makers to protect the Danube.

During the performances, a campaign video was shown on large screens that flanked von Goisern on stage. Representatives of WWF and partners also addressed concert goers, while volunteers distributed information and collected signatures.

“The protection of the Danube is a central concern for me,” said Hubert von Goisern.

“Together with WWF and its partners, I want to contribute to preserving this unique heritage for the benefit of people and nature and protecting it from future threats.”

Europe’s lifeline at risk
From drinking water and fishing to tourism and recreation, the Danube is Europe’s lifeline, providing essential benefits and services to many of the 83 million people living within the river’s basin.

But current plans could transform the living river into little more than a shipping lane.

According to WWF, new dikes, dams and dredging will straighten and force the river into a narrow corset, like a canal. In essence, EU government plans seek to promote navigation by fitting the river to the ships as opposed to fitting the ships to the river.

Such large-scale development projects on the river are already moving forward.

A Romanian river project, currently awaiting final go ahead from the European Commission, would cut off 90% of migration routes for the Beluga sturgeon, pushing the giant fish towards the brink of extinction. Further dams between Straubing and Vilshofen in Germany would destroy one of the last free-flowing sections on the Upper Danube.

“Such drastic measures are not needed to boost transport on the Danube,” said Dr Christine Bratrich, head of freshwater for WWF’s Danube-Carpathian Programme.

“Deepening the river to enable few bigger ships to navigate is neither rational nor economically prudent, especially considering the likely effects of climate change. The river is being fitted to the ships instead of using existing innovative ship construction technologies to fit the ships to the river.”

The campaign continues
The Linz Europa tour barge has been put into dry dock for the winter, but Hubert von Goisern will continue his musical tour next summer, playing his way up the Danube and Rhine rivers.

“The Danube must remain Europe’s lifeline,” von Goisern stressed. “Nature can do without mankind, but mankind not without nature.”

The Danube campaign will continue through next summer as well, collecting signatures for a petition and pushing decision makers to save the Danube as a living river.

Signatures for the petition are being collected from concerned individuals in all the Danube River countries and beyond, and will be submitted to the European Commission, International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River, and government ministries responsible for environment and transport.

WWF is calling on the EU and Danube countries to develop a comprehensive and sustainable solution for sharing the river — not just for shipping, but also for fishing, tourism, agriculture, conservation and other activities

“Despite past experience, navigation infrastructure does not necessarily have to have negative ecological, economic or social impacts,” said Dr Bratrich.

“Now is the time to start an open dialogue to support innovative and integrated solutions to improve shipping on the Danube without destroying more of our natural wealth and the myriad of benefits and services that it provides us with.”

* Eva Neumeier is an intern working with the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme.

One-sided discussion on Danube's future

2007-09-14

Environmentalists were left outside while the top representatives of transport and infrastructure sector from different Danube countries met behind closed doors on Thursday, September 13 to discuss the Danube’s future. The discussions were held at a Danube Symposium organised by the Austrian Ministry of Infrastructure to discuss implementation of the EU’s action plan for promoting shipping.

The one-sided discussion at Ybbs is indicative of current trend in transport policies regarding the Danube.

“EU and national transport policies are promoting one-sided plans and even moving forward with concrete projects without having previously evaluated their effects on ecosystems and the myriad benefits they provide to people and nature along the entire river,” said Dr Christine Bratrich, head of freshwater for the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme.

Planning without evaluation
If shipping on the Danube is indeed to be promoted as an environmentally friendly mode of transportation, then there must be a balance between protection and use along the entire stretch of the river. To date, however, there has been no strategic assessment of the impacts of planned projects on the Danube as a whole. Without such an evaluation, sustainable economic development is a farce and the future of the Danube as a living river is in question.

The loss of unique river landscapes, the effects on flood protection, the provision of drinking water, biological diversity, fishing, recreation and tourism – all of these aspects are not included in any cost and benefit calculation for current plans to develop the Danube as a waterway. This is despite the fact that existing capacities could be significantly increased with “soft” measures such as improved logistics, modernised fleets, weather and water forecasting without sacrificing the Danube’s most valuable wetlands and benefits.

Nevertheless, in the next years Austria alone is planning to spend €478 million for improving shipping. More than 80% of this amount will go toward infrastructure development, and only a small amount will be spent on improving the existing fleet of ships and logistics.

Danube dialog
The ongoing dialog on the future of shipping on the Danube organised by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) which involves representatives of different governments and stakeholder interests – including WWF – holds the promise of developing a plan for future use of the river that promotes transportation while securing the Danube’s greatest treasures and the benefits and services they provide -- but only if it is taken seriously.

In this respect, the one-sided discussion at Ybbs and aggressive promotion of damaging infrastructure projects before the dialog has come to any conclusions are not encouraging.