Brussels, 03.01.2022. The EU Commission has announced that both nuclear energy and fossil gas will be included in the so-called EU taxonomy. The taxonomy provides guidelines for the necessary sustainable and future-oriented investments in the economic transformation of Europe. With the decision that has now been taken, both nuclear energy and fossil gas will be labeled as "sustainable" energy sources.

Manuela Ripa, Member of the European Parliament for the Ecological Democratic Party (ÖDP), is appalled by the decision taken: "The nuclear lobby is obviously very successful in using the taxonomy as a gateway for a comeback of nuclear energy. It has the support of several Member States, led by France. If nuclear energy is classified as "sustainable" in future, it can hope to receive EU funding and private investment. It is clear that nuclear power cannot be a way out of the climate crisis. Apart from the safety risks and the unresolved problem of final storage, nuclear power is far too expensive. The money should rather be invested in renewable energies, which can supply clean energy indefinitely. The energy can be stored using hydrogen."

As far as the inclusion of fossil gas in the taxonomy is concerned, the MEP points out that gas causes large quantities of climate-damaging gases along its extraction and transportation chain, in particular methane, whose climate-damaging effect is several times higher than that of CO2, which is released when gas is burned. Therefore, contrary to what is often claimed, gas is hardly less harmful to the climate than coal and oil. According to Ripa, fossil fuels have no place at all in the regulation in this form, as the EU Commission would otherwise be jeopardizing the credibility of the "European Green Deal".

"Gas can only be accepted if the associated infrastructure is made "hydrogen-ready" and a clear end date is set in advance and long before 2049 for fossil gas. Anything else is greenwashing," said the MEP.

Manuela Ripa will campaign in the European Parliament to ensure that nuclear power and gas in their current fossil form cannot be described as sustainable in the taxonomy.

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