German scientists who advised the EU Commission on the taxonomy regulation that has now been submitted are shocked. Professor Andreas Hoepner, an expert in sustainable finance, as one of 57 members of the “Platform for Sustainable Finance”, describes the EU Commission’s proposal as “probably the biggest greenwash of all time”. Sebastian Rink from the Frankfurt School of Finance, considers the template to be a watering down that renders the entire taxonomy implausible, the report Southgerman newspaper, NDR and WDR.
On New Year’s Eve, the EU Commission presented its proposal for a taxonomy regulation that classifies nuclear power and natural gas as “sustainable”. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen explained in an interview that this is a voluntary guide for private investors. This should enable investors to see immediately in which financial product their money is helping on the way to climate neutrality.
Rink says according to the report on the draft that it was not scientific and not productive as far as the further development of the taxonomy was concerned. The actual goal of the EU taxonomy will be undermined, and other industries could also demand special treatment. That is not unreasonable, she writes Southgerman newspaper, because the Federal Association of the Defense and Security Industry also wants to include its companies in the EU taxonomy, because security is the basis of sustainability.
Olaf Scholz on the taxonomy
The “Platform for Sustainable Finance” had been discussing the taxonomy for a good year, and the EU Commission apparently hardly took up their proposals. The platform now has until January 21 to comment on the draft regulation. She was originally supposed to do this by Wednesday, but the deadline has been extended. After that, the EU member states in the Council and the EU Parliament have the opportunity to raise majority objections.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz had emphasized in the Bundestag on Wednesday, the use of nuclear power is not sustainable, it also makes no economic sense. Significant investments are necessary to ensure that the power supply in the countries is guaranteed with new nuclear power plants. EU Internal Market Commissioner Thiery Breton recently wrote in the French newspaper Sunday newspaper calculated that nuclear power would require investments of 500 billion euros in the EU by 2050.
“We know that these plants don’t run all the time either. We always hear reports about nuclear power plants failing, not at all because of safety problems, but because they can’t deliver for a variety of reasons,” said Scholz. Also, many things are still unclear, for example the question of disposal and still the question of security. “All the statistical calculations that some people claim that the whole thing is not dangerous are obsolete the moment something happens at a nuclear power plant and you live nearby.”
(anw)
