European Union News - Environmnet

A team of researchers have created a virtual prototype of the combined power plant developed by the Combined Power Plant 2 Project, that has already shown that it is technologically possible to let each individual producer feed their electricity into the grid and have the grid remain stable during this process.

Rating different products and production processes in terms of their environmental performance is currently quite a complex process. The existence of different methods either promoted by public authorities or put forward by private operators forces companies to choose between these options, increasing their costs and making it more difficult for consumers to access reliable and comparable information.

The data reported by the European Environment Agency (EEA) shows that air pollutant emissions were above legal limits in eight member states in 2011, while 12 member states exceeded these limits in 2010. The report also confirms that the most serious air pollutants are particulate matter, ozone and nitrogen dioxide.

The European Commission presented the four year H2SusBuild project that aims at developing an energy self-sustainable and zero-CO2-emission building by integrating a hybrid energy system, where the storage of hydrogen provides the energy supply in instances where renewable sources are lacking.

The European Commission launched the second call for proposals under the NER300 programme. This major funding programme promotes the commercial demonstration of environmentally safe carbon capture and geological storage (CCS) and innovative renewable energy (RES) technologies.

The European Commission proposed that funding of €160.5 million over a period of seven years for the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) to allow continued action to combat pollution caused by ships. The funds are intended to maintain the network of specialised anti-pollution vessels.

The Joint Research Centre announced that nine EU-based companies have been recognised for their energy-saving efforts, thanks to the installation of energy-efficient lighting technologies. The majority of energy saving was due to introduction of the new T5 efficient fluorescent lighting, among other measures, which replaces conventional magnetic ballasts with electronic ballasts.

Environment Committee at the European Parliament approved a draft legislation that includes an EU fund to be financed by levies on all ships visiting EU ports, that would make scrapping ships in EU-approved facilities competitive. MEPs proposed that the scheme will be funded by a recycling levy, in line with the "polluter pays" principle.