WWF - WWF Hungary office

EU legislation will promote green homes, green economy

2009-11-18

The new Energy Performance of Buildings Directive agreed Novemer 18, 2009 by the European Council and Parliament represents a crucial step in efforts to limit climate change, enhance energy security and generate jobs as well as a green economy in Central and Southeastern Europe.

The new legislation, which aims at realising the up to 40% in energy savings associated with the way buildings are constructed and managed, comes just weeks before the crucial global talks on climate change that are set to take place in Copenhagen in December and amidst efforts by governments in the region to stimulate job creation and flagging economies.

The recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive will require the public sector to take the lead by owning buildings with "nearly zero" energy standards by the end of 2018. The legislation requires all new buildings to have low energy standards by 2020.

EU member states will also be required to take measures to bring existing housing stock in line with the directives, though no firm standards for this have been laid down. Member states will have to develop national plans to encourage owners to take the opportunity to install smart meters, heat pumps and heating and cooling systems using renewables.

“We are disappointed that the recast Energy Performance and Buildings Directive is weaker than the version that had been agreed by the EU Parliament, which included firm standards for renovating housing stock and tighter deadlines for implementation,” said Andreas Beckmann, Director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme. “That said, this legislation represents a step in the right direction for our region – for jobs, a new economy as well as for climate and the environment,” Beckmann added.

Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, the Czech Republic and other countries of the region are among the most wasteful users of energy in Europe, with an intensity of energy use that is twice or more that of their Western European neighbours. The housing stock in the region is a particular problem in this respect, with old and inefficient buildings and still limited incentives for households to implement energy saving measures.

WWF and other organisations such as the Romanian Green Building Council have been promoting energy efficiency in buildings as a golden opportunity for cutting costs and climate change while promoting the creation of green jobs and a green economy.

“The costs of implementing energy efficiency and renewable energy measures are minimal as they are not cash expenditures but rather investments paid back by future, continuous energy savings,” says Steven Borncamp, who heads the Romanian Green Building Council, an industry group dedicated to promoting energy and resource-efficient construction. “With proven and technologies currently available in Romania, the energy consumption in both new and old buildings can be cut by an estimated 30-50 percent without significantly increasing the upfront investment cost.”

Constructing and retro-fitting energy efficient buildings is relatively low-tech but labour intensive, making it one of the leading opportunities for stimulating job creation.

“The pressure is now on the governments of Central and Southeastern Europe to transpose and implement the new EU legislation, “ WWF’s Beckmann said. “The sooner they get serious about this, the sooner we will begin realising the multiple benefits of energy efficiency in buildings”.

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

Croatia and Hungary to establish Europe´s largest river protected area - 20 years after the fall of the Iron Curtain

2009-09-16

Barcs, Hungary 17 September 2009 – Croatia and Hungary signed today a declaration to establish a Trans-Boundary UNESCO Biosphere Reserve that will protect their shared biodiversity hotspot along the Mura, Drava and Danube Rivers. This paves the way to create Europe’s largest river protection area.

The ceremony in the presence of the Prime Ministers of Croatia and Hungary, Mrs Jadranka Kosor and Mr Gordon Bajnai, took place in the border city of Barcs, Hungary.

Given the global significance of this agreement, WWF has highlighted the leading role of the Governments of Croatia and Hungary with a “Leaders for a Living Planet” award, handed over by Lifeng Li, Director of WWF Global Freshwater Programme.

"This cross border agreement to protect an area of great natural importance will foster regional cooperation, international understanding and peace keeping – 20 years after the fall of the ‘Iron Curtain’”, said James P. Leape, Director General of WWF International. “It is not only a significant advance for the region but can serve as an example of how nature conservation visions can bring countries together”.

With rare large floodplain forests, river islands, gravel banks and oxbows, the new protected area covers a 500 kilometres section of the three rivers and about 630,000 hectares of unique natural and cultural landscapes. The protected area, which has been declared with help of WWF and partner organisations (e.g. Drava League, Green Action and Euronatur) is awaiting UNESCO approval to become a Biosphere Reserve in 2010.

Today’s agreement, which was signed by the Ministers of Croatia and Hungary, Božo Biškupić (Minister of Culture) and Imre Szabó (Minister for Environment and Water) has the potential to become the cornerstone for a five-country Biosphere Reserve shared with Austria, Slovenia and Serbia. This would create the world’s first Biosphere reserve, commonly shared by five countries.

“WWF greatly welcomes this step of the governments of Croatia and Hungary as a very important milestone for the conservation of Europe’s natural treasures,” said Gábor Magyar, CEO of WWF Hungary. “This cross-border undertaking between a current and a future EU member is a potent symbol of the proposed unification of Croatia with the European Union,” Andreas Beckmann, Director of WWF’s Danube-Carpathian Programme added.

The area is home to the highest density of breeding pairs of the White-tailed Eagle in Europe and endangered species such as Little tern, Black stork, otters and sturgeons. It is also an important stepping stone for more than 250,000 migratory waterfowls every year. “The diversity of species in this region is one of Europe’s richest. Such areas can only be topped by the tropical rainforests,” says Arno Mohl, project leader “Mura-Drava-Danube" Biosphere Reserve from WWF Austria.

Moreover, the river ecosystem is vital for the socio-economic well being of the trans-boundary region. It is a major source for good drinking water, for natural flood protection, sustainable forestry, agriculture and fisheries as well as having an important role in promoting eco-tourism, awareness raising and environmental education in the region.

“We encourage Austria, Slovenia and Serbia to join the proposed Biosphere Reserve with Croatia and Hungary to complete this green belt protecting the heart of Europe”, WWF stresses.

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

Last shots come in for world's largest nature photo shoot

2009-06-21

A striking symmetry of wings as two gulls attack a grey heron on the Elbe in Germany. An ibex caught negotiating an absolutely impossible slope in Spain. A Hungarian bee eater of spectacular plumage snapped catching a bumblebee nearly as colourful.

These are among 100,000 images collected in the Wild Wonders of Europe project over the course of 114 missions. Come the conclusion of this endeavour, 66 professional photographers will have travelled to 48 European countries to document the wildlife of a continent often overshadowed by their more famous counterparts.

“Wild Wonders is an immensely valuable conservation initiative” Said WWF Director-General James Leape.

“It brings the work of WWF and other conservation organisations to life. These vivid images demonstrate that even in Europe there are still many undisturbed areas of natural beauty - and that our efforts to preserve them are paying dividends.”

Part of the mission of Wild Wonders of Europe is to inspire passion for wildlife in Europe and to change the perception that the whole continent is covered in buildings and roads.

Few people would know, for example, that Finland is the best place on Earth to view bears, wolves and wolverines living together, and that it is not uncommon to see several hundred vultures in the south of Spain in just one sitting.

“If we want these places and creatures to remain and flourish, we must inspire people to want to protect them. We hope that we can connect them to the heritage of this continent and make them realize how much there is worth saving.” Said Staffan Widstrand, Managing Director of the project

“Photography can have an enormous impact upon people’s perception. It can elicit emotion and understanding in a way that words often cannot.”

“This project will both excite and surprise those who have the opportunity to see it and we hope and feel that it will change the perception of wildlife in Europe.”

By July of this year, the photographers will have completed their planned 114 missions.

Then, in April 2010, to coincide with the international year of biodiversity, the Wild Wonders of Europe Great Wild Show Outdoor Exhibition series will be launched, and shown all across Europe, visiting many of its major cities over a period of 3 years.

WWF has been a keen supporter of the project from the start, and is proud to be the main conservation partner for Wild Wonders of Europe.

5 years on, EU accession scores some wins for nature conservation

2009-05-01

Five years after the EU’s “big bang” enlargement to the East and South, some wins have been scored for nature conservation in the new member states.

The ten countries that on May 1, 2004 pinned their stars to the EU flag – including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania as well as Cyprus and Malta – are the EU’s treasure troves of natural wealth, including some of its greatest natural forests, wilderness and cultural landscapes.

Accession to the EU has brought some solid advances for nature protection in the countries, but has not been a panacea for persisting challenges. At the same time, still unreformed EU policies and programmes have brought new threats to the EU’s newest heritage.

EU legislation
Over the last several years, the EU’s Natura 2000 network of specially protected sites – the cornerstone of the EU’s system for nature protection – has been extended to include the new member states. As a result, 142,540 km2 (an area roughly twice the size of Ireland) have been added to the EU’s “safety net for nature”, which now covers some 17% of all EU territory. The protective folds of the network cover plants and animals of European and even global importance, including e.g. the European lynx (Lynx lynx), Brown bears (Ursos arctos) and outstanding sites from the Bialowieza primeval forest in Poland to Triglav National Park in Slovenia.

Some of the EU’s new members have overtaken older member states in implementing the EU nature legislation. Slovenia has designated 35% of its territory as part of the Natura 2000 network. The Czech Republic can serve as an example to other member states for some of its management systems for the new areas.

Many challenges remain. While now on paper, the Natura 2000 network is only gradually being put into actual practice. In Slovakia, for example, many protected areas, like the Tatras National Park, are threatened by development of ski facilities and other tourism infrastructure, despite being part of the Natura 2000 network.

Despite reforms in recent years, the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy continues to favour industrial agriculture systems that undermine the rich biological diversity. There are still problems with targeting some of the agri-environmental programmes that are specifically dedicated to promoting nature conservation.

At the same time, EU development funds often serve to undermine natural treasures. EU and national safeguards, like Environmental Impact Assessments, which should ensure that environmental considerations are properly taken into account in planning and project development, are often ineffective or poorly applied in the new member states, providing little more than a green fig leaf.

Despite the challenges, there are clear cases where the application of EU legislation has already made a real difference. EU legislation backed by pressure from the European Commission has saved the Rospuda Valley in northeastern Poland. Bowing to pressure from the European Commission and a case before the European Court of Justice, the Polish government has called off longstanding plans to build a major motorway through the globally important area and is considering alternative routes.

Similar conflicts may be avoided in future as the Polish government has introduced measures to more fully integrate environmental concerns in planning for infrastructure developments before steps are taken toward implementation.

No panacea

“EU legislation and policies provide us with some powerful instruments for promoting nature conservation and the environment in these countries, but not a panacea for all problems – and probably cannot be expected to do so,” said Alberto Arroyo, said WWF’s Natura 2000 coordinator.

Legislation on paper must be applied in practice – and much of this comes down to the efforts not only of authorities and the European Commission, but also and especially citizens and environmental organizations as independent advocates for the preservation of Europe’s riches. Behind the European Commission’s action to save the Rospuda Valley in Poland were thousands of active citizens and organizations that raised public awareness and concern of the issue.

This experience is borne out by the newest EU member states Romania and Bulgaria. In Bulgaria, a growing public movement is actively opposing often illegal construction of ski and tourism facilities in many of the country’s most outstanding protected areas. In January, thousands of Bulgarians took to the streets for a week in the nation’s capital to protest – and ultimately stop – legislation that would have opened loopholes for developers to destroy natural areas throughout the country. According to a recent public opinion survey, 85% of Bulgarians now think that nature conservation and protected areas are a major concern in their country.

Prospects for next members

Many of the countries still waiting at the doorstep to EU accession bring with them a similarly rich dowry in natural wealth. Croatia, a candidate for EU membership, packs an astonishing diversity of natural riches in a relatively small area, from the striking karst landscape of the central part of the country to the marine wonders on the Adriatic coast. Turkey, also a candidate country, is a nature tycoon, boasting as many species of plants and animals as the rest of Europe combined, including many that are unique to the country.

Potential candidate countries in the Western Balkans like Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro host important freshwater ecosystems, including the most extended network of subterranean rivers and lakes in Europe, alluvial forests and wetlands of international importance, such as the Neretva delta (Bosnia and Herzegovina/Croatia), and Skadar/Shkodra Lake (Montenegro/Albania).

Preparation for implementation of EU nature conservation legislation and policies is in full swing in most countries. Croatia is already well on its way to bringing a large part of its natural treasures into the Natura 2000 network, and Serbia is just beginning a major EU-financed project to prepare the country for the legislation.

If the experience of past new member states is an indication, holding onto these treasures will require not only the committed application of key EU legislation, e.g. related to the Natura 2000, but also further reforms of EU policies and programmes, including the Common Agricultural Policy and the Regional Funds.

The best opportunity for implementing these reforms is coming up with the programming for the next financial period, 2013-20, which is already getting underway. It will be essential to ensure that environment and nature conservation are fully and effectively integrated into the new policies – and then also applied in actual practice.

For many of Europe’s greatest natural treasures, the EU still holds much promise – and threat.

Andreas Beckmann is Deputy Director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme

Interest grows in neglected global water treaty

2009-03-21

Instanbul, Turkey: Delegates of 14 countries attending the World Water Forum tonight signed pledges of support to a growing call to bring into force a global water treaty that has languished in limbo for more than a decade as anxiety grows about the increased potential for conflict in a world increasingly short of water.

The pledges were made at an awards ceremony held at the forum by a coalition of leading international and civil society organizations to “celebrate the accomplishments of the world’s leading countries in international water policy.”

Recognised by the awards were the 16 countries signed up to the UN International Convention on Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (the UN Watercourses Convention) - Finland, Germany, Hungary, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Namibia, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Qatar, South Africa, Sweden, Syria and Uzbekistan.

The delegates said they shared WWF’s concern that the poor coordination in river basin regulation between nations “represents a major threat to international peace and to the world’s energy and food security.” The pledge also noted that climate change would worsen the global water crisis.

Countires make a start on internal approval processes

The pledge to push for more countries to join the convention was signed by Slovenian President Danilo Tulk, and government delegates from Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Ghana, Greece, Iraq, Niger, Sierra Leone, Spain, and Syria. Internal processes for ratification have already started in some of the 12 countries at the event not already party to the Convention.

Dr Shaddad Attili, head of the Palestine Water Authority also signed, following the reading of a declaration by President Mahmoud Abbas earlier during the Forum that Palestine would ratify the convention once it attained statehood. When that occurs the River Jordan will have the most coverage of any international watercourse, with four of its five riparian states acceding to the Convention.

The UN Watercourses Convention provides a framework for common and cooperative management for the rivers, lakes, wetlands and aquifers crossing or forming international borders. An overwhelming majority of nations voted for the Convention in the UN General Assembly in 1997, but fewer than half the required number have proceeded to ratify it a national level.

“If fully enacted it would provide a strong basis for sharing and caring for the water draining half the world’s land surface and vital to the water supplies of 40 per cent of humanity,” said Flavia Loures, WWF International Water Law and Policy Senior Program Officer

World Water Forum vague on bridging divides

The UN Watercourses Convention has been one of the most contentious topics at the World Water Forum, with specific mention of the convention and its potential for bridging divides on water excluded from the Ministerial Declaration due to be issued on World Water Day (March 22) tomorrow.

“It is ironic in the extreme that with a World Water day themed around sharing transboundary waters the ministerial declaration to be issued that day takes great pains to avoid mentioning the only available instrument for global co-operation,” Ms. Loures said.

In lively World Water Forum discussions on the UN Watercourses Convention, it was also seen as a key legal instrument to foster cooperation on climate change adaptation in shared freshwater systems, crucial as river flows falter and extreme events such as floods and droughts increase in frequency and severity.
Millions of dollars in aid funds for developing cooperative water management schemes for some of the world’s major – and most contentious – river systems also remain available but unapplied for, although some of the countries concerned have been able to cooperate on marine issues.

The multi-stakeholder campaign to have the UN Convention on Watercourses brought into effect is supported by the UN Secretary General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, the European Water Partnership, Conservation International, the Global Nature Fund, Living Lakes Partners, Green Cross International, IUCN and WWF, along with many governments in Europe and Africa.

“As climate change further exacerbates the water crisis, the difficulties and cost of expanding and sustaining water security will rise, and potentially very steeply,” said Green Cross International President Alexander Likhotal.

“The risks from failing to act are increasingly understood to be high, and include economic instability, loss of quality of life and reversal of gains in poverty reduction, more frequent disaster and ecological degradation. Therefore, we are calling for a swift ratification of the Convention ."

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

Hungary burns carbon credibility propping up budget

2009-02-27

Hungary - a major seller of carbon credits– will weaken its credibility in the growing international carbon markets by using revenues to prop up its budget rather than improve energy efficiency and green its energy production, WWF-Hungary has warned.

Mr Imre Szabo, the Minister of Environment, announced that “the Ministry will cut its annual budget this year by freezing 67 million Euros from its 2009 Kyoto carbon trading revenues”.

According to WWF-Hungary, this will not improve the budget balances, create jobs or decrease the country’s energy dependence on gas and oil but it will bring into question the validity of Hungarian carbon credits.

Hungary had recently settled deals with Spain of 6.6 million AAUs (Assigned Amount Units is the trading unit of the Kyoto carbon trading system) and Belgium of 2 million AAUs – on the basis of projects to be undertaken through the country’s planned Green Investment Scheme (GIS).

“The Belgians have already criticized Hungary for being late with greening projects and freezing carbon trade revenues will only frustrate them even more”, said György Dallos, climate change programme officer of WWF Hungary.

The Hungarian government already has a track-record in undermining carbon trading revenues, WWF said. Although the Ministry of Environment had prepared the draft of the National Allocation Plan for the years 2008 to 2012 a year ago, the Budapest government has been unable to have it approved by the European Commission so far.

The delay is estimated to have cost Hungary €5 million due to an inability to fully participate in auction revenues under the European Quota Trading System (ETS) at a time when higher prices prevailed.

Halting or slowing the pace of investment in green technologies is also running counter to world trends of increasing such spending.

“President Barack Obama, Prime Minister Gordon Brown as well the Canadian, the German, the Australian and many other governments agree with Sir Nicholas Stern that supporting green investments in energy efficiency and renewables is an effective tool to save and even create millions of jobs and decrease energy bills and energy dependence,” Dallos said.

The German “Alliance for Work an Environment” programme saved and created 145.000 jobs and saw 342.000 flats being retrofitted for energy efficiency in the difficult recession period of the German construction industry between 2001 and 2006, Dallos noted.

“If 1.8 million badly insulated Hungarian family houses were insulated within a 5-year period, it would create tens of thousands of jobs all over the country,” Dallos said.

“In addition to that 1.4 billion cubic metres of Russian gas imports would be saved and 3 million tons of greenhouse gas. At current gas prices this would mean saving more than 500 million € in gas imports annually. ““This would bring relief to millions of Hungarians with lower monthly energy bills.”.

Other WWF Hungary proposals for new and sustainable energy politics include saving hundreds of millions of budget Euros by eliminating the current gas price support system and increasing “ridiculously low” mining fees on lignite could cut budget deficits..

Additionally the Government could also stop supporting the Vertes Coal Plant through the “coal penny” system collected on every Kilowatt-Hour consumed in the country.

Another efficient way to save government money is stopping the state owned Hungarian Energy Company (MVM) to build a new lignite plant which would never reach a break even given current financial and electricity market conditions.

“MVM, the largest state owned company, is sitting on piles of cash thanks to the exceptionally high profits in the last two years,” Dallos said. “So far the government has hardly touched these profits in order to establish a new sustainable energy policy for a brighter future of Hungary.”

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

Earth Hour sparks global unity

2008-12-10

71 cities in 62 countries including Kyiv and Odessa in Ukraine have committed to switch off for WWF’s Earth Hour in 2009. The campaign, which hopes to reach out to more than one billion people in 1,000 cities around the world, asks individuals, businesses and governments to switch off lights for just one hour on Saturday March 28 at 20:30 to create a platform of support for action on climate change.

Earth Hour aims to demonstrate unprecedented solidarity and provide a visual global mandate that will put the heat on world leaders meeting in Copenhagen in December 2009 to strike a new global deal on climate change.

The lights out initiative, which began in Sydney in 2007 as a public awareness raising campaign, has grown significantly over the past two years and now has 71 cities ready to flick the switch in 2009. Cities already committed include Los Angeles, Las Vegas, London, Hong Kong, Sydney, Rome, Manila, Oslo, Cape Town, Warsaw, Lisbon, Singapore, Istanbul, Mexico City, Toronto, Dubai and Copenhagen.

At 20:30 on Saturday March 28, the world will witness some of the most recognisable landmarks on the planet dim the lights in support of decisive action on climate change. Icons switching off include England’s National Football Museum, the world’s tallest hotel building in Dubai – the Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest tower - the CN Tower in Toronto and in Rome – Quirinale, the official residence of the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano.

Auckland’s Sky Tower – the tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere will go dark, joined by Australia’s iconic sails of the Sydney Opera House and across in Cape Town, South Africa, the iconic Table Mountain will mark Earth Hour by turning off its flood lights.

Director General of WWF International Jim Leape said, “When leaders gather in Copenhagen in December 2009 to negotiate a new deal on climate they must feel that the eyes of the world are upon them.”

“Earth Hour provides an opportunity for the public to send a powerful signal that they are watching and expect action,” said Mr Leape.

Executive Director of Earth Hour Global, Mr Andy Ridley said, “Recent events have shown that the world can unite in a time of crisis. The global economic crunch is an example where, when it matters, decisive multi-lateral action by powerful nations has been shown to be achievable.”

Mr Ridley also said 2009 was the planet’s ‘destiny year’, with critical decisions needed to be made at the Copenhagen meeting on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“2009 is the year we decide the future of the earth. It is the year the world finally agrees on a plan to massively reduce carbon emissions across the globe. This is the time to invest in new ways of doing business in a new low carbon economy. We must all step over the line together. The sum of our actions today can change history and secure the future of our planet.”

The extensive WWF conservation network also has more than 30 teams working in countries such as Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Ukraine, Brazil, Greece, India, Peru, Spain, Switzerland and France, ready to support a local Earth Hour roll out.

Click here to see the Earth Hour video

Contact:
Andreas Beckmann, Deputy Director, WWF-DCP, M: + 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.

Coke announces sustainability targets with WWF

2008-10-30

Atlanta, USA – Coca-Cola has committed itself to a 20 percent improvement in water efficiency over 2004 levels in its worldwide operations by 2012, saving about 50 billion litres of fresh water over projected use that year.

The water saving targets were negotiated under the terms of a partnership between The Coca-Cola Company, the World Wildlife Fund (US) and WWF International.

Also announced were ambitious targets for reductions in carbon emissions, a commitment for action down the Coca-Cola supply chain and conservation support for some of the world’s most important freshwater basins.

“Our sustainability as a business demands a relentless focus on efficiency in our use of natural resources,” said Muhtar Kent, president and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company.

“These performance targets are one way we are engaging to improve our management of water and energy.”

Commitments to “grow the business, not the carbon” and achieve a five per cent absolute reduction in emissions over 2004 levels for all developed country operations are expected to produce savings of 2 million tonnes of CO2 in 2015, the equivalent of planting trees over an area of nearly 250,000 hectares.

“In this resource constrained world, successful businesses will find ways to achieve growth while using fewer resources,” said Carter Roberts, president and CEO of WWF-US.

“The Coca-Cola Company’s commitment to conservation responds to the imperative to solve the global water and climate crisis.”

In addressing sustainability issues down its supply chain, Coca-Cola will look first at sugar where it is a major global consumer. The company and WWF are working with the Better Sugarcane Initiative to establish standards, evaluate suppliers and set goals for the purchase of sugar.

Coca-Cola is also to identify two further commodities for action in 2009.

Possibly the most far-reaching of the initiatives announced today by the company are joint conservation initiatives with WWF for some of the world’s most important freshwater resourcesincluding the Yangtze, Mekong, Danube, Rio Grande/Rio Bravo, Lakes Niassa and Chiuta, the Mesoamerican Reef catchments, and rivers and streams in the southeastern United States.

More than a dozen production plants and /or bottlers in the areas surrounding these rivers are developing and implementing comprehensive water stewardship plans.

It is intended that these plans will ultimately serve as models for similar water resource conservation frameworks wherever Coca-Cola operates.

“Water and energy conservation are areas where we can truly make a difference,” said Kent.

“Last year, we set a goal to return to communities and to nature an amount of water equal to what we use in our beverages and their production. These targets support our work to achieve that goal.”

WWF and The Coca-Cola Company announced the $US 20 million partnership in 2007. The partnership has now been extended additional two years (through 2012) with Coca-Cola providing $US 3.75 million in new funding.

Coca-Cola is also a member of WWF’s Climate Savers programme, which has seen some of the world’s leading corporations achieve dramatic cuts in emissions.

“The expansion of our partnership with WWF demonstrates our shared dedication to achieving large-scale results, and a grounded understanding that collaboration is key if we are to help address the world’s water challenge,” Kent said.

Living Planet analysis shows looming ecological credit crunch -- for the Earth and Danube-Carpathians

2008-10-29

The world is heading for an ecological credit crunch as human demands on the world's natural capital reach nearly a third more than earth can sustain.

That is the stark warning contained in the latest edition of WWF’s Living Planet Report, the leading statement of the planet’s health. In addition global natural wealth and diversity continues to decline, and more and more countries are slipping into a state of permanent or seasonal water stress.

“The world is currently struggling with the consequences of over-valuing its financial assets,” said WWF International Director-General James Leape, “but a more fundamental crisis looms ahead -- an ecological credit crunch caused by under-valuing the environmental assets that are the basis of all life and prosperity.”

The report, produced with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Global Footprint Network (GFN), shows more than three quarters of the world’s people now living in nations that are ecological debtors, where national consumption has outstripped their country’s biological capacity.

Living at the cost of others
“Most of us are propping up our current lifestyles, and our economic growth, by drawing - and increasingly overdrawing - on the ecological capital of other parts of the world,” Mr Leape said.

“If our demands on the planet continue to increase at the same rate, by the mid-2030s we would need the equivalent of two planets to maintain our lifestyles.”

The report, published every two years, has since 1998 become widely accepted as a statement of earth's ability to remain a “living planet”. In 2008, it adds for the first time new measures of global, national and individual water footprint to existing measures of the Ecological Footprint of human demand on natural resources and the Living Planet Index, a measure of the state of nature.

“We are acting ecologically in the same way as financial institutions have been behaving economically - seeking immediate gratification without due regard for the consequences,” said ZSL co-editor Jonathan Loh. “The consequences of a global ecological crisis are even graver than the current economic meltdown.”
“Continued ecological deficit spending will have severe economic consequences,” said GFN Executive Director Dr Mathis Wackernagel. “Resource limitations and ecosystem collapses would trigger massive stagflation with the value of investments plummeting, while food and energy costs skyrocket.”

The USA and China have the largest national footprints, each in total about 21 per cent of global biocapacity, but US citizens each require an average of 9.4 global ha (or nearly 4.5 Planet Earths if the global population had US consumption patterns) while Chinese citizens use on average 2.1 global ha per person (one Planet Earth).

Eastern Europeans part of the problem -- and the solution
Though not as profligate in their use of resources as Americans, people from the Danube-Carpathian region are nevertheless living well beyond their means. 2.5 earths would be required if everyone consumed like Czechs; 1.3 earths would be required if they consumed like Bulgarians.

“Particularly for countries in the Danube-Carpathian region, there are significant opportunities to develop and enhance livelihoods while at the same time ensuring that we do not exceed the one planet that we have,” said Michael Baltzer, director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme.

For all countries of the Danube-Carpathian region, carbon emissions are responsible for the greatest part of the impact the country has on the planet, accounting for as much as 60% of the ecological footprint of the Czech Republic. But most countries of the region are grossly inefficient in their use of energy, with an intensity of energy use per unit of output that is two to three times higher than that of Western European countries. There is thus very significant potential for saving energy, saving money while also saving the planet.

The report shows for the world as a whole that a range of efficiency, renewable and low emissions measures could meet projected energy demands to 2050 with reductions in carbon emissions of 60 to 80 per cent.

The report also points to the growing crisis related to water, which is expected to increase with climate change. Bulgaria in particular is already experiencing severe stress on water resources. Much of this impact could be lessened with simple water conservation measures and more rational use of water resources.

“If humanity has the will, it has the ways to live within the means of the planet, but we must recognize that the ecological credit crunch will require even bolder action than that now being mustered for the financial crisis” Mr Leape said.

The global ecological footprint is worsening at an increasing rate. The 2006 WWF Living Planet Report revealed an excess ecological footprint of 25 per cent in 2003 (2008 LPR - 30 per cent on global data for 2005), with a projection that the two planet requirement would be reached around 2050 (2008 LPR – 2030s).

Notes for editors:

The 2008 Living Planet Report can be downloaded from www.panda.org/lpr/08

The report and additional multimedia materials including broadcast quality video can be found at wwf.extranet.largeblue.net, using the password mA1aGb73

The global ecological footprint is worsening at an increasing rate. The 2006 WWF Living Planet Report revealed an excess ecological footprint of 25 per cent in 2003 (2008 LPR - 30 per cent on global data for 2005), with a projection that the two planet requirement would be reached around 2050 (2008 LPR – 2030s).

For further information:
WWF: Phil Dickie, WWF International News Editor, +41 79 7031952, pdickie@wwfint.org
WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme: Andreas Beckmann, +43 676 84 27 28 216, abeckmann@wwfdcp.org
GFN: Nicole Freeling, + (415) 577-9282, nicole@footprintnetwork.org
ZSL: Alice Henchley, Senior Press Officer, +44 7790 301596, eml: alice.henchley@zsl.org

About WWF
WWF is one of the world's largest and most respected independent conservation organizations, with almost 5 million supporters and a global network active in over 100 countries. WWF's mission is to stop the degradation of the earth's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world's biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.

About ZSL
Founded in 1826, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is an international scientific, conservation and educational charity: our key role is the conservation of animals and their habitats. ZSL runs ZSL London Zoo and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, carries out scientific research in the Institute of Zoology and is actively involved in field conservation in over forty countries worldwide. www.zsl.org

About GFN
The Global Footprint Network promotes a sustainable economy by advancing the Ecological Footprint, a tool that makes sustainability measurable. Together with its partners, the network coordinates research, develops methodological standards, and provides decision makers with robust resource accounts to help the human economy operate within the Earth’s ecological limits. www.footprintnetwork.org

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.”

Carpathian jewels come together

2008-09-24

The first conference of the Carpathian Network of Protected Areas took place September 23 and 24, 2008 in Poiana-Brasov, Romania. The historic meeting brought together over 100 representatives of protected area administrations, ministries of environment and conservation organisations from across the Carpathians to discuss and plan future cooperation for nature conservation across the region.

The Carpathian Network of Protected Areas (CNPA) unites protected area administrations from across the Carpathian Mountains in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine. The network has been established within the framework of the Convention for the Protection and Sustainable Development in the Carpathians.

"This first meeting of the Carpathian Network of Protected Areas is a historic occasion and an important step in strengthening the protected area administrations that safeguard our many of our greatest natural treasures," said WWF's Head of Carpathians/Forests and Protected Areas Erika Stanciu.

The new network will provide a platform for exchanging know how and experience, promoting coordination and cooperation among parks, promoting the Carpathian region and its natural jewels as well as advocating for its long-term preservation.

Major issues of concern to Carpathian protected area administrations that were discussed by participants and that will be important issues for the new network included tourism – both addressing threats from unsustainable approaches while also fostering environmentally-friendly tourism; sustainable financing for protected areas; management planning and implementation of management measures; awareness raising and education; as well as management of brown bear and other large carnivore populations.

Future plans include promoting public awareness of the Carpathians and its protected areas, including through a new website (www.carpathianparks.org).

The Carpathian Mountains are an area of exceptional natural riches that has been identied by WWF as one of the 200 most valuable ecological regions on earth. The area includes some two-thirds of European populations of brown bears and other large carnivores as well as the continent’s greatest remaining stands of natural forest.

The conference of the Carpathian Network of Protected Areas was organised by the CNPA with support from the UNEP Interim Secretariat for the Carpathian Convention, the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme, the Alpine Network of Protected Areas Alparc, and the MAVA Foundation. The CNPA conference took place back-to-back with the annual conference of Europarc, the pan-European network of Protected Areas, which was co-organised by WWF.

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

Carpathian biodiversity protocol signed

2008-06-26

The rich natural heritage of the Carpathian Mountains, including many of Europe's greatest natural treasures, received additional support on June 19 with the signing of the Protocol on Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biological and Landscape Diversity to the Framework Convention on the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Carpathians.

The protocol was signed by all 7 countries that are a party to the Carpathian Convention -- the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine -- during the second Conference of the Parties to the Carpathian Convention, which took place June 17-19 in Bucuresti.

"WWF welcomes the signing of the Biodiversity Protocol to the Carpathian Convention, which comes none too soon as the region and its natural treasures are facing growing pressure from a range of threats, from construction of motorways to ski facilities, not to mention illegal construction and logging in many protected areas", said Michael Baltzer, director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme. "The key priority now is to ensure that what has been signed on paper is enforced in practice," he added.

Red lists and ecological networks
The biodiversity protocol commits signatory countries to harmonise and coordinate their efforts to enhance the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of biological and landscape diversity of the Carpathians, for the benefit of both present and future generations. The countries should work together for the conservation, maintenance and sustainable use of natural and semi-natural habitats, and securing their continuity and connectivity; restoration of degraded habitats; conservation and sustainable use of species of flora and fauna characteristic to the Carpathians, in particular on conservation of endangered or endemic species and large carnivores.

The Parties should also apply the precaution and prevention principles by assessing and taking into consideration possible direct or indirect, short- or long-term influence, including cumulative effects of the projects and activities. These are important provisions in a region that is undergoing rapid development, with major potential threats to nature from infrastructure and other projects.

Network of protected areas
Measures on which the countries should cooperate include drawing up a list of Carpathian Red List of Habitats and Species; establishing an ecological network in the Carpathians, composed of protected areas and other areas significant for biological and landscape diversity of the Carpathians and for coherence of the network. Each Party should also take measures in its national territory with the objective to prevent introduction or release of harmful invasive species.

A key provision is support for and cooperation under the Carpathian Network of Protected Areas, which brings together protected area administrations from across the region. Many of the greatest natural treasures in the Carpathians already enjoy some form of protection, but in most cases this protection is mostly on paper and very limited in actual practice, with significant problems e.g. with illegal construction and logging in national parks and other protected areas across the region. The protocol also calls for development and implementation of management plans for protected areas across the region.

WWF's work for the Carpathians
A major focus for WWF's work in the region, supported by the MAVA Foundation, has been strengthening of protected area management, including the Carpathian Network of Protected Areas. The ProPark Foundation, co-founded by WWF in May 2008, is dedicated to capacity building and training related to protected area management.

WWF has been a driving force for the protection of the Carpathian ecoregion. The Danube-Carpathian Summit organised in 2001 by WWF and the Romanian Government eventually led to the establishment of the Carpathian Convention, which formally came into force in 2007. In 2001, WWF and partners in the Carpathian Ecoregion Initiative also undertook the first comprehensive assessment of environment and social and economic impacts in the Carpathians.

Contact:
David Strobel, WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme

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.