ENVIRONMENT IN BRIEF
EEB’ S NEW SLETTER F OR I TS M EM BERS
2009 - 05
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Content
INTERNAL NEWS
QUALITIES AND EXPERIENCES
MEMBERS’ SECTION
EU POLICIES
NEWS FROM THE EEB’ S EU POLICY UNIT
Product Policy
Waste strategy
Soil Thematic Strategy
Water
Chemicals - REACH
pp
Pesticides
See the members’ section for more information on a campaign about
pesticides.
NEWS FROM OTHER EEB UNITS
Zero Mercury Campaign
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
PUBLICATIONS AND PRESS RELEASES
WEBSITES
MISCELLANEOUS
18-03-09
Call for Action
SAVE THE EU MANDATORY ENERGY LABEL.
Because of intense lobbying efforts from industry, the well-known A-G energy label is
now under threat.
 WHY IS IT UNDER THREAT?
After intense pressure from CECED, the domestic appliance manufacturers, the Commission has
given in and is proposing to modify the A-G ranking with a confusing numerical scale with
endlessly varying top marks. In practice, this would mean that the best class could be different
depending on appliances: for TVs the best could be class 7, for computers class 9, for washing
machines class 7. You would lose the meaningful ranking because consumer will not know what
number is the best.
The Commission is now proposing to add on top of A-G the new classes “A1”, “A2”, “A3”instead of
using a simple “A” grade
The only reason why this is proposed is because industry do not want regular upgrade of the label
because their product could be "downgraded" (former A-rated appliances could become C or D) and
they argue that they will lose money. This has nothing to do with helping consumer making the right
choice.
The UK government and the European federation of consumer associations have issued a study
showing that most consumers in the EU would prefer keeping the A-G with regular rescaling, and would
not be confused by the rescaling process. Click here to access (Mori reports):
http://www.mtprog.com/cms/library-publications/
 WHEN WILL A DECISION BE TAKEN AT EU LEVEL
The Commission initially proposed an alternative energy label for vote during the week of 9 March (13
March). However, the European Parliament, who was not originally involved in the decision on the
energy label format gave a strong support to the A-G label. The adoption of the new format has now
been postponed. Your national governments will vote shortly on this measure in a so-called Regulatory
Committee.
 WHAT ARE ENVIRONMENTAL NGOs DOING AT EU LEVEL
Some Brussels based organisations have sent a letter to President Barroso and other Commissioners
to convince them to maintain the A-G label.
 WHAT CAN YOU DO AT NATIONAL LEVEL : WHY YOUR GOVERNMENT VIEW IS
IMPORTANT
Given that the decision is ultimately in the hands of the Member States, it is key to try and influence
your government's position.
A large block of countries including Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland and other Easter European countries
is supporting the ridiculous proposal of adding classes "A1", "A2", "A3" on top of A, jeopardising the
future of this essential tool. France is hesitating.
It would great if you could:
- contact key national journalists to warn them and explain there is a very good story to tell (how the
EU is about to stupidly confuse consumers for the sole purpose of satisfying unproven private
interests). See for instance, an article in the UK press:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/georgemonbiot/2009/jan/30/eu-energy-labelswashing-machines
- contact environment and energy ministry to influence/challenge their position
- circulate the info and mobilise your members especially in Germany, Italy, Spain, France, Poland
and other Eastern European countries.
We need your help!!! Thank you very much in advance!
CONTACT AT EEB and ECOS:
Nathalie Cliquot: nathalie.cliquot@eeb.org
Edouard Toulouse: edouard.toulouse@ecostandard.org
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
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www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
INTERNAL NEWS
EEB is looking for a POLICY OFFICER
on Climate and Environmental Policy Integration
The work consists of:





Networking with EEB members;
Drafting EEB positions.
Carrying out some research.
Contact with relevant entities in EU Institutions and coalition partners.
Communicating and representing EEB positions.
Qualities and Experiences
The Policy Officer should:
 Have an educational or practical background on energy, climate change and/or
environmental economy issues.
 Have a strong affinity for European environmental organisations.
 Have experience in environmental policy work, including analysis of policy proposals,
formulation and presentation of oral and written comments/proposals for change.
 Have a sound grasp of the operation of EU Institutions and EU environmental law.
 Have good communications and networking skills.
 Be flexible in dealing with environmental topics.
 Speak and write English fluently, preferably also French.
 Be prepared to work outside normal office hours, if necessary, and to travel at short notice.
Before applying, please look at the more detailed job description and the application
process at EEB’s website: http://www.eeb.org/vacancy-policy-officer.pdf
Deadline for Application: Tuesday 31 March
Start Date: as soon as possible
MEMBERS’ SECTION
SEMAINE SANS PESTICIDES – WEEK WITHOUT PESTICIDES
On 20-30 March the Week Without Pesticides – Semaine sans pesticides will take place in. It
is coordinated by a French EEB member, MDRGF together with other members of ACAP,
Citizen's Action for Pesticides' Alternatives. During 10 days associations, farmers or
institutions, hold to educate the public on health and environmental risks due to pesticide use
and to prove that viable alternatives to chemical treatments exist.
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
Last year the Week Without Pesticides was a great success. It gathered 257 organisations in
France and in ten other foreign countries - of which 148 associations, 50 garden centers and
retailers, 34 local communities, 14 schools and 11 libraries – who organized 408 actions on
pesticides alternatives. For this year a lot of activities are planned. The information is available
in English and in French. Please take a look at http://www.semaine-sanspesticides.com/index-en.html or http://www.mdrgf.org/
EU POLICIES
NEWS FROM THE EEB’ S EU POLICY UNIT

Product Policy
Launch of the “Cool Products for a Cool Planet” campaign
In order for citizens and opinion leaders to better understand what the Ecodesign policy is
about to deliver and why ambition is key, several green NGOs, including EEB, have joined
forces to launch the "Cool Products for a Cool Planet" campaign.
Visit the "Cool Products" website: www.coolproducts.eu.
This campaign is an opportunity for EEB members to get involved with us to step up efforts for
greener products. In 2009, the EEB intends to organize two specific working group meetings
on EU product policy.
On 12 March, to coincide with a series of important votes in Brussels on the implementation of
the Ecodesign Directive (TVs, fridges, motors and energy labeling), a "penguin refugee
camp" was set up in front of the European Commission main building by Friends of the Earth
Europe, BUND, Natuur en Milieu and Milieudefensie.
A petition launched by Avaaz.org a few days earlier was already signed by more than
125,000 citizens requesting strong energy efficiency policies on appliances
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
(http://www.avaaz.org/en/refrigerator_revolution_video/). The petition was delivered to the
European Commission.
Energy Labelling lay-out: more pressure needed to avoid controversial modification of
A-G Label
Following EEB’s call for action in the previous In Brief, the Commission has postponed the
decision on the format of the energy label.
This is mainly thanks to Members of the European Parliament from the Industry Committee
supporting the A-G label in a vote on the Energy Labeling Directive Revision on 9 March.
There are still too few countries supporting the A-G label. You can still get involved!!!
For further information on this issue, please
nathalie.cliquot@eeb.org

contact
Nathalie
Cliquot
Waste strategy
Position paper on Biowaste Green Paper finalized!
Finally we finalized the EEB position paper which is now
available for download on the EEB website. Thank you all for
your contribution!
In short, the EEB will promote an EU biowaste directive that:
o Establish the guiding principle that biowaste should not be landfilled or incinerated
o Promote home composting as a locally-based waste prevention measure
o Promote separate collection of biowaste and biological treatment of biowaste through a
combination of anaerobic digestion and composting wherever possible
o Establish binding targets in the form of minimized organic content in residual waste
before further treatment (kg/person/year) with a view to drive both prevention and
separate collection
o Define consistent limit values for high-quality composted materials to be considered as
products, establishing separate collection as a prerequisite.
For further information on this issue, please
nathalie.cliquot@eeb.org
contact
Nathalie
Cliquot
Participation at a stakeholder meeting in the Committee of Regions (CoR) on biowaste
legislation
CoR rapporteur Ms. Mona-Lisa Norrman invited stakeholders for a stakeholder meeting in
order to get inputs for her report on the 13 of March. Commission desk officer Bartosz
Zambrycki participated as well. We presented the views of the EEB as elaborated in the
position paper (see above). Some representatives of municipalities and regions rejected EU
biowaste legislation with binding targets. They would just support the elaboration of standards
and informal European coordination efforts. CoR rapporteur Norrman strongly supports waste
prevention but was not clear on binding targets to be included in future biowaste legislation.
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
For further information on this issue, please
nathalie.cliquot@eeb.org

contact
Nathalie
Cliquot
Soil Thematic Strategy
WILL THE SOIL DIRECTIVE FALL VICTIM TO THE CRISIS?
Since the Czech Presidency has given the Council negotiations a
new impulse, some countries have become worried that a blocking
minority of 5 will not be enough to stop this Directive. It appears that
the UK Finance minister has now started lobbying several Member
States, such as Poland and Spain, who are supportive of the
Directive to change their position.
Main argument: given the crisis we are in, we could never afford to clean up our soils. NGO
actions in especially Spain and Poland but effectively in all Member States will be
continuously needed, until the end of the Czech Presidency at least, to avoid the Soil Directive
being put on ice again or even withdrawn.
EUROPEAN COMMISSION REPORT ON SOIL OUT NOW!
The European Commission recently made public a report on the relationship between soil and
climate change (CLIMSOIL) which underlines the crucial role that soils can play in mitigating
climate change. The report “Review of existing information on the interrelations between
soil and climate change” and a press release are available at
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/soil/review_en.htm
For further information on this issue plus draft lobby materials, please contact
Pieter de Pous: pieter.depous@eeb.org

Water
Extending the list of pollutants for phase out under the Water Framework Directive
Following the adoption of the Priority Substances Directive last year,
which sets Environmental Quality Standards for about 30
substances, the Commission has now set out to identify which other
substances will need to be added to this list in two years time and to
define quality standards for them. The EEB has submitted
approximately 27 candidate new substances to the Commission for
consideration. Some of these substances include pharmaceuticals. A
recent new study from the Netherlands just found that a number of
these pharmaceuticals are harmful to fish and other water
organisms. More info on the study can be found at:
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
http://www.groenegezondheid.nl/admin/myuploads/Media/RademakerdeLange_Englishversion
.pdf
For further information on
pieter.depous@eeb.org
 Chemicals - REACH
this
issue,
please
contact
Pieter
de
Pous:
pp
Use your right to know about the presence of harmful chemicals in
many consumer products! There’s a lot you can do - free of charge
- to drive for a toxics free future! For example there’s a model letter
available that can be sent to your government officials in order to
raise your concerns about chemicals in consumer products. For
more information:
http://www.chemicalshealthmonitor.org/spip.php?rubrique111
For further information on this issue, please contact Christian Schaible
christian.schaible@eeb.org

Pesticides
See the members’ section for more information on a campaign about pesticides.
For further information on this issue, please contact Christian Schaible
christian.schaible@eeb.org
NEWS FROM OTHER EEB UNITS

Zero Mercury Campaign
Labelling of foodstuff containing mercury in relation to the
Environment Committee’s report on the EC proposed regulation on
the provision of food information to consumers
Currently the EU regulation on food information to consumers is being revised. On the 16
February and on the 16 March there were discussions in the Environment, Public health and
Food safety (ENVI) committee in the EU parliament concerning labelling of foodstuff.
EEB supports the need for labelling of meat of large predatory fish and foodstuffs containing
meat from certain fish species in relation to their mercury content. The label would advice
vulnerable groups, so that they have the opportunity to reduce their methylmercury intake in
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
order to avoid any impairment to their health. EEB has sent comments to the Environment
Committee on the issue and followed the discussions at the European Parliament.
http://zeromercury/EU_developments/090313EEB_Fish_labelling_letter_ENVI.pdf
On the last meeting it was concluded that, due to the large amount of amendments, the
discussion about food packages in the committees of the European Parliament is now
postponed to after the election in June and the rapporteur will submit a new report. We will
follow up on this issue and try to ensure that the mercury related amendment is included in the
new report.
For more information please contact Anna Lind anna.lind@eeb.org or
Elena Lymberidi-Settimo elena.lymberidi@eeb.org
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
2009
dates
17 June
EEB EVENTS
OTHER EVENTS
INSTITUTIONS
Spring Alliance Conference: Adoption
Sustainability Agenda
GLOBAL PROGRESSIVE FORUM, 2-3 APRIL
The Global Progressive Forum World Conference will take place in Brussels at the European
Parliament on 2-3 April. The event is free of charge. You can register at
http://globalprogressiveforum.org/spotlight/new-globalisation-progressive-change.
PUBLICATIONS AND PRESS RELEASES
EEB Press Releases –March 1 - 17, 2009 (www.eeb.org)
2 March
Retail forum paves way for sustainable consumption in Europe
11 March
MEPs vote to reduce industrial pollution
EEB Recent Publications – (www.eeb.org)
March
Response to stakeholder consultation on the Green Paper on the management of
bio-waste in the EU
March
EEB and BEUC comments on Draft Commission decision establishing ecological
criteria for the award of the EU Ecolabel for tissue paper products
Spring Summit 2009 / ETUC, EEB and Social Platform open letter to head of
state and of government
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), the European Environmental Bureau
(EEB) and the Platform of European Social NGOs (Social Platform) have joined forces since
2001 to campaign for a social and sustainable development of Europe. Every year, at the
occasion of the Spring Summit, the three organisations issue common recommendations to
EU leaders on how to maintain a balanced approach between economic, environmental and
social objectives. This year their contribution focuses on the recovery plan. The paper was
released on 13 March and the idea of the letter is to make sure that short term recovery
measures fit in a long term vision of a society that works for social progress, protects the
environment and redistributes wealth. The letter is available at
http://www.eeb.org/activities/General/documents/090319_ETUC-EEBSocial%20Platform_Joint%20letter_SPRINGsummit-FINAL.pdf
All EEB publications and press releases are on the web (if you are missing one, please let us
know!): http://www.eeb.org/Index.htm
WEBSITES
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS
In previous In Briefs we have given you some useful links concerning the European
Parliamentary elections that will take place in the beginning of June. Here we have gathered
them again so please take a look.
We encourage you to compare the Green 10 manifesto and the programmes of the political
parties. That can help you to formulate your questions when you have meetings with the
candidates. We would like to inform you that EEB is also working on general slides about the
G10 manifesto. The slides will be useful for all our members in these meetings. We will make
them available as soon as possible. We are also working on a website about the elections.
The Green 10 election paper: http://www.eeb.org/activities/General/G10-Election-documentFINAL-Sept08.pdf (available in English and German)
The European Parliament launched its own election campaign on 17 March. The election page
of the European Parliament with all kinds of information:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/elections2009/ (available in all EU languages). This time around
the parliament adapted alternative ways of campaigning, for examples installations and video.
Take a look at this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3pFQrMn0DQ
The election page of the socialists (PES): www.elections2009.pes.org
The European People's Party’s (EPP) "DialogueTV" - an online and interactive TV platform,
with the aim of approaching European citizens and informing them about the EPP program
ahead the European elections, is available at: http://www.dialoguetv.eu. The EPP elections
manifesto can be found at
http://dl1.streaming.telenetmedia.be/epp/manifesto/short_EPP_European_Elections_2009_Man
ifesto.pdf
The European Green Party (EGP) introduced their manifesto regarding the upcoming
European Parliament elections. European Greens elections manifesto and campaign blog is
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
available at http://europeangreens.eu/menu/egp-manifesto/. They will organise a conference to
launch their election campaign in Brussels on 27th of March.
On the website of the liberals (ALDE) we couldn’t unfortunately find a particular elections
manifesto. All that we could find was an elections event that will take place in Brussels at the
European Parliament on April 16. Take a look at http://www.alde.eu/en/details/news/alde-
inter-parliamentary-conference-the-european-union-on-the-eve-of-the-elections/
Background material to help campaigning before the elections
Athenora Consulting, a consultancy company providing global public affairs practice that
integrates a wide array of strategic lobbying practices, has produced a paper called
“ATHENORA FOCUS 2009/2014: European elections, new European Commission”. It gives
out information about the European Institutions and can be helpful while lobbying when it
comes to the elections. The document is available in English and partially in French:
http://www.athenora.com/uploads/en/EU%20Focus%2020092014,%20Athenora%20Consulting.pdf
EU blogging competition ahead of June elections
Europe's first continent-wide blogging competition by the European Journalism Centre is
available at http://www.thinkaboutit.eu. The idea is to boost debate on EU issues ahead of
the next elections to the European Parliament in June.
EU Profiler - an electoral compass to help orienteering on the way to the elections
For the upcoming elections, the European University Institute (EUI) is launching, in
cooperation with Kieskompas, and the NCCR Democracy/Politools network, the EU Profiler.
The EU Profiler is an electoral compass that provides information on the elections for the
European Parliament in an innovative, unique and comprehensible manner and is easily
accessible to a wide range of users. It will go online in May 2009. The Profiler will be available
in all national languages of the EU and will be customised to each country's national campaign
context. Please also look at the website www.kieskompas.nl in order to see how an electoral
compass works. If you already want to take a look at the EU profiler itself, the site can be
found at http://www.euprofiler.eu/.
MEDITERRANEAN ISSUES
A group of NGOs working together on Mediterranean issues, Comité de Suivi (CdS), whose
member EEB is, has written a position paper on the occasion of the Mediterranean Session
to be held at the 5th World Water Forum (Istanbul, 16-22 March 2009). The document
Freshwater Issues in the Mediterranean - Mediterranean Regional Process is available at
http://www.eeb.org/activities/water/documents/0903-CdS_Position_Paper_Water.pdf
WWF’S EARTH HOUR
At 8.30pm on Saturday 28 March, people, businesses and iconic buildings worldwide will
switch off their lights and unnecessary electronic appliances for an hour to raise awareness
towards the need to take action on climate change. Sign up and switch off to show world
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF
leaders you want them to tackle climate change. Your help is needed to make this the biggest
mass participation event ever! More information available at http://www.earthhour.org
MISCELLANEOUS
Employment opportunities
We are happy to inform you that EEB member Seas At Risk is looking for an additional staff
member. See more information about the post of a Communications & Policy Assistant at:
http://www.seas-at-risk.org/n2.php?page=104
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European Environmental Bureau (EEB) | Boulevard de Waterloo 34 | B1000 Brussels | Belgium | Tel: +32 2 289 1090 | Fax: +32 2
289 1099 | Mail: eeb@eeb.org | www.eeb.org | www.chemicalreaction.org | www.newngoforum.org |
www.zeromercury.org
AN INTERNATIONAL NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION | ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE SANS BUT LUCRATIF