Austria sues EU executive over green label for gas, nuclear
The Austrian government said Monday that it has filed a legal complaint with the European Union’s top court over plans by the bloc’s executive branch to label natural gas and nuclear power generation as sustainable
BERLIN (AP) — The Austrian government said Monday that it has filed a legal complaint with the European Union's top court over plans by the bloc's executive branch to label natural gas and nuclear power generation as sustainable.
Austria's environment minister, Leonore Gewessler, warned that the measure could “greenwash” nuclear power and gas despite the environmental damage they cause.
The EU's executive Commission plans to add certain nuclear and gas plants next year to a list that helps investors determine which projects are sustainable.
Gewessler said the disasters in Chernobyl and Fukushima showed nuclear power plants came with “incalculable risks.” Meanwhile the burning of natural gas, a fossil fuel, adds greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere, stoking climate change.
A dozen environmental groups have already launched legal challenges to the Commission's plans, backed by the bloc's lawmakers in July.
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