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Europe takes a stand on tar sands

"With the controversy over tar sands building in the U.S. and Europe, the world is watching Canada. The federal government can’t continue to say one thing abroad and do nothing at home," warns Gillian McEachern, program manager of Climate and Energy for Environmental Defence.

Ottawa (6 Oct. 2011) - The Fuel Quality Directive, adopted in 2009, set a binding target to cut CO2 emissions by six per cent by 2020. This directive applies individual values to different sources of fossil fuels based on their life cycle carbon footprint. The move to essentially label fuel derived from tar sands should discourage its use by European companies.

“The Canadian government has been working relentlessly to kill clean energy policies such as the Fuel Quality Directive in an effort to promote the short term interests of big oil. This precedent setting proposal from the European Commission sends a clear signal that no amount of aggressive lobbying can counter the scientific fact that the tar sands are one of the world’s dirtiest fuels. We applaud the European Commission for its integrity and sticking to the science when it comes to greenhouse gas pollution from the tar sands” says Graham Saul, executive director of Climate Action Network Canada.

"With the controversy over tar sands building in the U.S. and Europe, the world is watching Canada. The federal government can’t continue to say one thing abroad and do nothing at home," warns Gillian McEachern, program manager of Climate and Energy for Environmental Defence.

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) joined with dozens of civil society organizations to endorse a call to halt the reckless expansion of the tar sands. Recognizing the growing movement, Darek Urbaniak, extractives campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe said, "This success could not have been achieved without strong support from campaign groups both in Europe and North America."

NUPGE

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE