EU climate plan impact on Poland "overestimated"
From: ENDS Europe DAILY November 24, 2008
A non-governmental Polish research institute has heavily criticised a report warning that the proposed EU climate and energy package will have a negative economic impact on Poland. The report was published by the Polish electricity association in June 2008 and has underpinned the Polish government's drive to water down plans to revise the EU emission trading scheme (ETS) after 2012. Its authors warned of annual GDP losses of 0.6% and electricity price rises of 60% as a result of the plans.
But in a new assessment of the report, researchers at the Gdańsk Institute for Market Economics say it is selective in its analysis and makes "substantial mistakes". It wrongly assumes Poland's 15% renewable energy target for 2020 must be met entirely by the electricity sector and that energy efficiency is not an option for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the institute says. As a result, GDP losses and electricity price increases are "overestimated", say the Gdańsk researchers. Potential benefits for the economy are "disregarded". They suggest Poland could avoid many negative impacts simply by improving its national implementation of the EU proposals.
Polish Electicity Commission Report, June 2008
Gdańsk Institute Evaluation, November 2008
Press Release from Polish Climate Coalition
Polish miners, greens clash on eve of climate talks
From: The Times of India - November 25, 2008
WARSAW: Greenpeace protesters clashed with coal miners at a new opencast mine on Monday in an incident highlighting Poland's environmental dilemma on the eve of a major UN-led conference on climate change. The western Polish city of Poznan will be the venue for the December 1-12 conference aimed at agreeing a new global climate package to replace the Kyoto protocol which expires in 2012.
But Poland still relies on polluting coal for more than 90% of its growing energy needs. Along with other ex-communist European Union states, it opposes parts of an EU climate package forcing big cuts in carbon dioxide emissions. "This is a protest against burning coal and against extracting coal from a mine like this one," Greenpeace Poland spokesman Jacek Winiarski said at the Jozwin opencast mine near Poznan. "We were stopped violently by miners... but fortunately nobody was hurt," he said of the protest, which involved about two dozen Greenpeace activists waving "Quit coal!" banners.
The Jozwin mine lies near Goplo lake, listed on the EU's Nature 2000 programme aiming to safeguard threatened species in the bloc. Investments can still be conducted in such areas if studies show there is no better option.
Read Full Article: Polish miners, greens clash on eve of climate talks | Developmental Issues-Earth-The Times of India
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