Fern NGO

🇪🇸 Last weekend, over 100,000 people gathered in Santiago de Compostela, #Spain to demonstrate against plans by Altri Group and Greenalia S.A. to build a new pulp mill in Galicia.  Three billion trees are cut down annually to meet the demand for #PaperPackaging. The #pulp and #paper industry is one of the world’s major polluters and one of the heaviest users of fresh water.  Occupying agricultural land equivalent to the size of 500 football fields, the planned mill would absorb up to 46 million litres of water from the Ulla River – returning 30 million litres of treated but contaminated water to the same river – every day. One of the largest public demonstrations in Galicia since 2002, the tremendous support from citizens and civil society illustrates the power of collective action. The Spanish and #EU governments must listen these calls and shift to reuse systems that do no harm to people, nature or the climate. Learn more about the demonstration here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gzxt_tzs  For more information on the problems with paper-based packaging, check out 👉 https://lnkd.in/ebQVzB2u  

📣🇰🇷 #SouthKorea has announced a major reform of its #biomass energy policy: the government will no longer subsidise new biomass power and state-owned co-firing facilities as of January 2025. The new policy will also phase out support for existing plants. "As the largest policy rollback of its kind in #Asia, this reform is poised to curtail the rapid and often unchecked growth of the biomass industry in the region,” explains Solutions for Our Climate (기후솔루션) (SFOC).  Energy companies should not be rewarded for destroying #forests and burning #wood – one of the least efficient and most polluting #energy sources available. South Korea’s reform marks significant progress towards reducing over-demand for wood and thereby reducing #deforestation, particularly in Southeast Asian countries with growing biomass industries, such as #Vietnam and #Indonesia. We hope that #Japan will take inspiration from these unprecedented reforms in the region. Read the SFOC’s press release here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gSSTz-mn Learn more about the problems with bioenergy here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eNkqzjgG

#Nickel is a vital component in Electric Vehicle (#EV) batteries, and therefore a crucial material for the transition to a low carbon world. But communities and forests in #Indonesia are paying a heavy price for #EU demand for it. Nickel #mining on Kabaena island in South East Sulawesi is destroying forests, contaminating water and blighting local lives. Fern’s Perrine Fournier & Hannah Mowat joined Satya Bumi's Sayyidatiihayaa Afra & Dhany Alfalah, Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia and The Associated Press photographer Yusuf Wahil to visit Kabaena. They met with people who shared their experiences and perspectives on the impact that nickel mining has on their lives and communities. Despite living around mining sites, most of them do not benefit from mining activities or have a say in shaping #RawMaterials policies. Read their interviews here 👉 https://lnkd.in/e34hBiem Last week, at #EURawMaterialsWeek, Stéphane Séjourné said that Europe needs to reach out to the world to secure its access to the #RawMaterials needed for the #GreenTransition and that #partnerships should be a win-win for all countries. He stated that it will be his priority together with Jozef Sikela and Maroš Šefčovič. It was clear that:   ➡️ Increased efforts are needed to develop innovative demand-side policies to reduce our consumption, so the green transition is also just.    ➡️ More transparency is needed about the way the EU engages in partnership with resource rich countries to secure access to transition minerals.   ➡️ Without true transparency and civil society’s meaningful participation, these partnerships are likely to perpetuate unequal relationships between the Global North and the Global South. EU Raw Materials Coalition SIRGE Coalition Caroline Avan Cecilia Mattea Mighty Earth Aryanto Nugroho Yuyun Indradi Safrudin Mahendra

Excellent new report from Principles for Responsible Investment on the EU's #bioenergy policy and its much-needed reforms. They have a beautifully concise summary: "1) Wood is scarce and valuable. Avoid incentivising use of primary forestry biomass for energy production. 2) Maximise forest value to store carbon, enhance biodiversity, and provide materials for the bioeconomy. 3) Shift policies from ‘biomass for energy’ to ‘forests for climate and nature solutions’." https://lnkd.in/e5T4w6xr Fern NGO Environmental Paper Network Oxfam

Food and agriculture policymaking must not be made in a silo. Decisions made there also have a huge effect on our health and environment - the global food and agriculture system is responsible for 87% of global #deforestation, and nearly a third of greenhouse gas emissions.   Fern supports this letter from European health actors to call for #EUFoodPolicy to be transformed to prioritise public health and disease prevention. Their demands include making ready-made meals healthier and more sustainable.   Read their joint letter to the Commission about what needs to happen next. For more information, our report on regulating ready-made meals in the EU is available here: https://lnkd.in/eeZpjY2a   Madre Brava European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) PAN Regional Office DACH Société Française de Santé Publique (SFSP) Läkare för framtiden Polish Society of Lifestyle Medicine European Stroke Organisation Caring DoctorsFédération Française des Diabétiques Sociedad Española de Salud Pública y Administración Sanitaria-SESPAS France Assos Santé Alliance Santé Planétaire KLUG - Deutsche Allianz Klimawandel und Gesundheit Fédération Promotion Santé Collectif National des Associations d'Obèses • CNAO European Liver Patients' Association - ELPA Academia Española de Nutrición y Dietética

🆕 This year's last #ForestWatch is out!     👉 The European Commission, Parliament and Council concluded to delay application of the #EU Deforestation Regulation by a year, but not to re-open the substance of its obligations!     The outcome respects the efforts of responsible governments and businesses that have already invested energy and resources into #EUDR implementation, says Nicole Polsterer.      👉 The Commission has asked the Council and Parliament to break a Voluntary Partnership Agreement with Cameroon and has notified Liberia’s Government of its intent to cancel that #VPA as well.     Sydney Vennin stresses that, instead of cancelling the #Liberia VPA, the Commission should focus on integrating enforceable trade mechanisms into future partnerships to advance implementation of the EUDR.     👉 This month's partner articles bring us to #Cameroon and #Indonesia!      🇨🇲 RubberCam, a company that caused enormous forest destruction and was engaged in an eight-year dispute with local communities in Cameroon, has finally decided to cease operations. This case shows that strong implementation & communication about the EUDR can bring radical changes in behaviour, says Samuel Nguiffo, Director of Centre pour l'Environnement et le Développement (CED).       🇮🇩 #COP29 has left developing nations and vulnerable communities disappointed by the persistent gaps in global climate justice, especially in delivering sufficient resources. Nadia Hadad, Executive Director at MADANI Berkelanjutan, emphasises that countries such as Indonesia require robust support to implement ambitious #ClimateAction without harming economic development.     Read more and sign up 👇   https://lnkd.in/dX5_gXmV     🔗 Links to the articles in the first comment! 

Global demand for #nickel - an essential component of electric vehicle (#EV) batteries - has surged, as countries shift away from fossil fuels.   #Indonesia’s abundant nickel reserves are crucial for a low #carbon world. But extracting them is ruining local peoples’ lives and causing rampant #deforestation, writes our campaigner Perrine Fournier in Climate Home News.   #Mining companies have been granted access to mine around three-quarters of #Kabaena, a tropical island in one of the country’s so-called ‘nickel provinces’. Only a few mining concessions are currently operating, and the human and environmental damage is already apparent.   Amal, a local student, shares his experience: “The mining company broke our forests. They made us lose our river.”   Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/eD8yNyHp

The #EU is the biggest #cocoa consumer in the world, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon collectively produce over 70% the world’s cocoa. Recent research by the Solidaridad Network found that 93% of all #chocolate products in Dutch supermarkets include cocoa grown by #farmers who aren't being paid enough to earn a living income. To ensure that all chocolate products on their shelves are fair, supermarkets must:  ✔ Enable farmers to earn a living income for their cocoa  ✔ Ensure that farmers no longer bear all the financial risks of setbacks, by delivering clearly understood, long-term contracts that are adhered to by all parties  ✔ Make contracts public, conduct independent research into their supply chain and publish results  ✔ Draw up a clear and achievable plan to guarantee 100% fair chocolate  We call on Dutch supermarkets to ensure that their shelves only stock chocolate products that are made from #FairTrade chocolate by the end of 2025. 📝 Sign the petition:️️ https://lnkd.in/euDitCQD  🎥 Watch the full video:️ https://lnkd.in/e4J36T5D  #WhereIsMyFairChocolate? #WaarIsMijnEerlijkeChocolade? 

Today, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and Head of States of relevant South American countries reached a political agreement for a #FreeTradeAgreement (#FTA) between the #EU and #Mercosur.  “This deal perpetuates the extractivist model in mining and agriculture – the two biggest drivers of forest destruction and land grabs in South America,” comments our campaigner Pierre-Jean Sol Brasier.     Read more here: https://lnkd.in/geWNrwNv

This week, negotiations concluded and affirmed a 12 month delay to the EU Deforestation Regulation (#EUDR), while making no further changes to the substance of the law.  The European Commission signalled that this delay is a “phase-in time” and that it intends to “step up dialogue” with partner countries, releasing a new Framework on International Cooperation. Worryingly, the Framework says little about partnerships and the need for negotiations to be multistakeholder. Rather than providing a way forward, it merely sums up and reframes existing dialogues, projects and initiatives.  Our latest briefing spells out the flaws and calls upon the Commission and Member States to undertake effective and inclusive partnerships that address root causes of #deforestation and enable EUDR implementation.  Without meaningful and inclusive partnerships with producer countries, the EUDR risks cleaning #EU supply chains while doing nothing to tackle deforestation. Read the briefing 👉 https://lnkd.in/eungHKvi