January 25, 2023
By May 1st at the latest, all workers in the private sector will be entitled to a bicycle allowance. In addition, trade unions and employer organizations concluded a supplementary collective agreement in the National Labour Council (NAR). The compensations, indexed annually, amount to 0,27 euros per km for those who regularly cycle to and from […]
January 18, 2023
Belgian SMEs, companies of up to 250 employees, invest more rapidly in ‘green’ car fleets. In 2022, one in eight new commercial vehicles was fully electric. Most company cars (80%) are younger than five years, and since 2021, there are more new hybrid gasoline cars than diesel cars. The largest part of newly registered company […]
January 17, 2023
Antwerp Airport reopened its connection with London on Monday. Luxembourg-based airline Luxair is responsible for the link to London City Airport. In the first phase, they will fly to the British capital four times a week. Although flying is climate-friendly compared to before, traveling by Eurostar remains a good deal less polluting, even if the […]
January 16, 2023
The Euro 7 ruling keeps throwing oil on the fire. According to the Association of European Auto manufacturers (ACEA), the proposed norm demands a considerable investment for a small ecological trade-off. With practically no impact on the NOx emissions of road transport, the organization pleads that it better should be skipped. However, the Commission put […]
January 11, 2023
New data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service of the European Union reveal that 2022 was a year of climate extremes, with record-high temperatures and increasing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. The year 2022 was the second warmest in recent history for Europe. Only 2020 was even warmer. The temperature did not reach absolute […]
December 29, 2022
Last Wednesday, wind energy production in Belgium reached record levels. That morning, at 7:15 a.m., the combined wind farms produced as much as four nuclear power plants: 4 505 MW of electricity. The new record is partly due to the expansion of wind farms on land, and at sea, the national grid manager Elia confirmed. […]
December 27, 2022
The city of Lille is to introduce an eco-bonus to ease highway congestion. So writes the French newspaper Le Monde. Congestion on the highways to Lille during rush hours is increasing so that alarm thresholds for fine particles in the air are increasingly being exceeded. Those who do not use their cars during rush hours […]
December 22, 2022
According to the European Investment Bank (EIB), Africa can earn a trillion euros annually from the production of green hydrogen from 2035. This hydrogen can be produced without CO2 emissions using solar energy and transported abroad. The ‘Africa’s Extraordinary Green Hydrogen Potential’ report, analyzing Africa’s green hydrogen potential, was commissioned by the European Investment Bank, […]
December 21, 2022
In the Brussels region, 18 640 fines have already been issued this year for motorists who drove into the Brussels Low-Emission Zone (LEZ) in a car that was too polluting. So reports Brussels Environment. The number of fines rose again compared to last year, despite a longer warning period. Most of the fines are for […]
December 20, 2022
Volkswagen Group has told the newspaper Financial Times that it has cut loose its external partners within its CO2 pool. After meeting the CO2 targets last year, with the help of four Chinese carmakers, the output of electric vehicles at the German car giant is now vast enough to proceed on the EV strength of […]
December 19, 2022
The idea of introducing a general speed limit of 100 km/hour on Walloon hhighhways and main roads has not been included in the Walloon government’s revised climate and energy plan (PACE, Plan Air Climate Énergie). Instead of a general speed limit of 100 km/hour, there will be ‘dynamic management’ of speed limits, says Walloon Mobility […]
December 19, 2022
From 2027 onward, citizens of the European Union will have to pay for the greenhouse gases they emit through their transport and the heating of their homes. On Saturday, negotiators from the European Parliament and the European Council, which represents the Member States, agreed on this. Climate goals This means that everyone within the European […]
December 16, 2022
No diesel cars will be allowed in the low-emission zones (LEZ) of Antwerp and Ghent from 2031, the Flemish government decided this week. The newspaper De Morgen was the first to report that, and the deadline for gasoline cars in 2035, which will also be banned. Even plugin hybrid will no longer get free entry. […]
December 15, 2022
The Federal Government and energy provider Elia have signed an agreement relating to the financial support offered up as part of the Recovery & Resilience Facility (RRF). The fund was established by the European Commission during the corona pandemic to support future-oriented investments being undertaken by Member States. The signing of the protocol, which governs […]
December 14, 2022
The EU members and the European Parliament have agreed on introducing a CO2 tax for non-European companies. The new climate measure applies to the aluminum, steel, and fertilizer sectors and the hydrogen industry. The so-called Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) makes companies outside the EU pay for their CO2 emissions, just as European companies already […]
December 13, 2022
The European Commission will allocate more than 150 million euros for two Belgian projects intended to capture CO2 in the ports of Antwerp and Ghent. That is what the companies involved in the project communicated on Monday in a common press release. [email protected] Export Hub is a joint project of Air Liquide, BASF, Borealis, ExxonMobil, […]
December 08, 2022
Brussels Airlines is expanding its fleet and offering in preparation for summer 2023. It is also creating more than 200 new jobs. The airline is thus adding five new Airbus A320 neo aircraft to its fleet, reducing its carbon footprint. Most of the additional jobs are flying personnel, some of whom are already being trained. […]
December 06, 2022
Air France-KLM is to buy 800 000 tons of non-fossil Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) over ten years from TotalEnergies to meet its environmental objectives. The two companies signed on Monday a memorandum of understanding for this, starting in 2023. The fuel will be produced by TotalEnergies in its biorefineries and made available to Air France-KLM […]
December 06, 2022
The global energy crisis has triggered an unprecedented acceleration in installations of renewable power, reports the International Energy Agency (IEA). Energy security concerns caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have motivated countries to increasingly turn to renewables such as solar and wind to reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels. Prices of the latter have spiked […]
December 02, 2022
Low-cost airline Ryanair has signed an agreement with Shell to supply more sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The oil and gas group will help make SAF more available to the Irish carrier’s fleet at 200 European airports. This mainly concerns Ryanair’s largest bases in Dublin and London Stansted. Ryanair has already partnered with Neste, the world’s […]
November 25, 2022
Truck transport is massively polluting, and the emissions from transporting retail goods spike 94% during Black Friday week. However, there is a ready-made solution in the form of zero-emission trucks, the European environmental lobbying group Transport and Environment (T&E) says. Black Friday is notorious for peak consumerism and waste. Trucking retail goods is a dirty […]
November 24, 2022
The European Environment Agency (EEA) has published its recent ‘Air Quality in Europe 2022’ assessment, and the conclusion is not really reassuring. Although Europe’s air quality keeps on improving, air pollution still remains the largest environmental health risk in Europe, causing chronic diseases and premature deaths. According to the EEA, at least 238 000 people […]
November 17, 2022
The Brussels Region will launch a permanent citizen’s parliament on climate next year. According to Brussels Minister for Climate Transition Alain Maron (Ecolo), the initiative is a world first. Panels of 100 Brussels residents each will be able to ask questions, make recommendations, and be structurally involved in climate policy. They will also monitor what […]
November 16, 2022
Gas network operator Fluxys, dredging company DEME, and the Port of Antwerp-Bruges port authorities are planning to produce green hydrogen in Egypt. The green hydrogen could be transported via the port of Antwerp or Zeebrugge, where Fluxys has already announced a first project. The project in Egypt should help meet the expected strong growth in […]
November 16, 2022
Within a few weeks, the European Commission will review the truck’s CO2 standards, and lobbying groups of the industry and the environmental NGOs are bringing the heavy cannons to bear for the last influencers’ battle. So does Transport & Environment, publishing a study proving e-fuels can’t compete with battery electric trucks even in the most […]
November 15, 2022
The Chinese joint venture BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) has announced an investment of some € 1.4 billion in the expansion of its electric car battery production in the city of Shenyang. This is to supply the vehicle plants there. This still involves the assembly of purchased cells into ready-to-install batteries, not in-house cell production. The […]
November 14, 2022
To meet the Paris agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to 1,5°C above pre-industrial levels, the planet cannot support more than 315 million additional internal combustion engine vehicles by 2040, Greenpeace Germany reports based on a new study of the production forecasts of the world’s major carmakers. Carmakers plan to sell about 712 million more, […]
November 10, 2022
According to the independent think tank Influencemap, Japanese carmaker Toyota is in the shady company of the big oil and gas firms regarding a negative climate policy. Its score (-42) is the same as Russian energy giant Gazprom. The worst company in the world putting profit over the planet is Chevron. Toyota, which was listed […]
November 10, 2022
Europe just experienced its warmest October since the beginning of the registrations, with temperatures of almost 2°C above the 1991-2020 reference period. The day temperatures reached record levels in western Europe and, more specifically, in France, Austria, Switzerland, and large parts of Italy and Spain. Lower-than-average temperatures were measured in Australia, eastern Russia, and parts […]
November 09, 2022
Wallonia might consider for its regional low-emission zone (LEZ) postponing the ban on Euro 0 and Euro I cars for two years until 2025, Minister for Environment Céline Tellier (Écolo) has said on the news channel LN24. “In crisis times, it would be unthinkable to force people to buy a new car,” she added. The […]
November 03, 2022
The ‘free-flow’ highway without barriers at toll roads or the so-called “péages”, a system long established in other countries, will soon become the new standard in France. Users can drive at the permitted speed, without slowing down to stopping, by passing under gates equipped with cameras and sensors that identify their vehicle. The French state […]
November 03, 2022
Europe is warming up twice as fast as the rest of the world. Between 1991 and 2021, temperatures in Europe increased by 0,5°C per decade. These figures are reported by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The ‘State of the Climate in Europe’ report was drawn up together with Copernicus, the EU’s climate research service, and […]
November 03, 2022
“TotalEnergies’ greenhouse gas emissions are four times higher than what the French multinational oil and energy giant admits.” That is what the environmental organization Greenpeace’s French branch is accusing TotalEnergies of. The painful detail is that Greenpeace’s report was released just a few days before the start of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in […]
October 28, 2022
The worldwide energy crisis triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine can accelerate the transition to more sustainable energy sources. Many countries take short-term measures to protect consumers against peaking energy prices, but the crisis also forces countries to accelerate the implementation of structural changes. That is the conclusion of the International Energy Agency’s annual […]
October 28, 2022
Thursday evening, the negotiators of the European Parliament and the Member States have reached an agreement to have all new cars and vans sold beyond 2035 to be zero-emission. It’s the ultimate step to have the ban on gasoline and diesel cars, including (plugin-) hybrids, written in stone before final ratification. “This extremely far-reaching decision […]
October 26, 2022
The Good Move circulation plan in the Brussels region continues to cause a commotion. After protests, the municipality of Schaerbeek is already implementing the first modification to the circulation plan. The Interprofessional Federation of Self-Employed Entrepreneurs SDZ demands repealing the Good Move circulation plan. With its Good Move plan, Brussels wants to improve mobility in […]
October 24, 2022
The new Euro 7 ruling for tailpipe emissions is reportedly not going to be as drastic as feared. It seems that the European Commission is giving some leeway to carmakers who strongly lobbied against stringent measures. The new ruling will most likely eclipse the current standards for gasoline-powered vehicles under Euro 6. According to the […]
October 19, 2022
Belgium has the ambition to become a strategic hub for hydrogen in Europe. The new federal hydrogen strategy was launched on Tuesday. “We have to opt for hydrogen to avoid deindustrialization in our country,” said Prime Minister De Croo (Open Vld) at the presentation in the Antwerp Port House. Also present at the ceremony were […]
October 18, 2022
The air quality in Antwerp, and more particularly in the many so-called ‘street-canyons’ – densely populated streets with high buildings where pollution is ‘trapped’ – has still not improved. That is what the action group Recht op Lucht (ROL) (‘the right to clean air’) concludes after some measurements in the city. “Our findings should be […]
October 14, 2022
At least seven out of ten motorists believe that driving a car requires financial sacrifices, but 72% say they cannot do without one. So says the annual barometer conducted in 18 countries worldwide by the Cetelem Observatory, the economic research and intelligence unit of BNP Paribas. Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed fear they will no […]
October 14, 2022
Last year, air pollution in Flanders increased again. According to the latest report of the Flemish Environmental Agency (Vlaamse MilieuMaatschappij, VMM), this is due to the revival of the economy, intensified traffic after corona, and probably the increased wood burning. The good news is that the concentration levels of polluting substances are lower than in […]
October 13, 2022
A new study by the Dutch technical research institute TNO about the possible uptake of zero–emission trucks to replace diesel in the coming years shows the battery-electric truck (BET) is the most cost effective (only) option from 2030. Fuel cell trucks will play a marginal role due to higher costs. By 2035, 99,8% of the […]
October 12, 2022
The cheapest way to make Belgium climate neutral by 2050 is a combination of some new, small modular nuclear reactor plants (SMRs) and more wind energy at sea. That seems to be the conclusion of a recent EnergyVille study under the authority of Febeliec, the Belgian federation of large industrial energy consumers. In the summer […]
October 10, 2022
The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the UN body created in 1944 to regulate, among others, safety, efficiency, and environmental protection in global aviation, has agreed to the common goal to make the whole sector climate-neutral by 2050. Of the 193 member states of the 41st Assembly in Montreal, the organization’s sovereign body that meets […]
October 10, 2022
US giant Amazon plans to more than double its fleet of electric vehicles making deliveries in Europe. The multinational technology company that focuses on e-commerce, among others, is planning an investment of more than 1 billion euros over five years, it announced on Monday, to work on decarbonizing its transport network in Europe. Amazon, the world’s largest […]
October 07, 2022
Since the introduction of the low-emission zone (LEZ) in Brussels, the number of diesel cars in the capital has fallen, and air quality has improved. This is evident by the latest monitoring by Brussels Environment. In particular, the proportion of Euro 4 diesel vehicles, banned in 2022, has fallen sharply. It went from 14% in […]
October 06, 2022
The German multinational chemical company BASF has ambitious plans: it wants to transform its Antwerp production unit, the second-largest in the world, entirely climate neutral as soon as possible. On Wednesday, the company threw light on its plans during Belgian King Filip’s and Queen Mathilde’s visit to Ludwigshafen. The BASF Group aims at climate neutrality […]
October 04, 2022
Belgium plans to construct an artificial offshore energy island 45 kilometers from the Belgian coastline to provide the country with electricity produced by the many offshore wind turbines in the North Sea. Elia has just sent out an invitation for tenders. The plans were illustrated during an information session energy manager Elia organized on Monday, […]
October 04, 2022
The F11 bicycle highway from Antwerp to Lier is fully ready to receive cyclists. The total investment in the project is almost 17 million euros. Since the start of this legislature in 2019, Flanders has realized 210,64 km of new bicycle highways. The F11, which has a width of 4,5 meters, should be an incentive […]
October 03, 2022
British multinational chemicals company Ineos plans to store CO2 captured from its plant in Zwijndrecht (Antwerp) in the Danish North Sea. It’s the first Belgian company to store its CO2 permanently in the North Sea. The company’s plans fit in the ‘Greensand Project’, a pilot project starting in December that intends to store 1,5 million […]
September 30, 2022
New York State has officially banned the sale of new, emission-intensive passenger vehicles by 2035. Governor Kathy Hochul announced this on Thursday. It thus follows the example of California, which in August made the historic decision to ban sales of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035. In addition, several local transit agencies will also commit to […]
September 29, 2022
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne wants to make France the champion of low-carbon hydrogen. To achieve that goal, Ms. Borne presented an initial list of ten selected projects on Wednesday. These should allow for the creation of a “sovereign sector” for producing hydrogen that so far is still very greedy for fossil fuels. While hydrogen, […]
September 28, 2022
In 2023, a new European climate center will be inaugurated in Uccle (Brussels). It has to become a federal ‘center of excellence’. The idea is to centralize and coordinate all climate knowledge in one accessible location. Scientists and organizations will be able to gather there and exchange expertise. The leading lady of the new institute […]
September 28, 2022
“Car manufacturers are misleading investors by significantly underestimating the total distance traveled and fuel consumption of cars, representing a ‘ticking carbon bomb’ for asset managers,” says the NGO Transport & Environment. The results of a new report issued by the organization show that carmakers’ global emissions are, on average, 50% higher than what they report, […]
September 22, 2022
On Friday, 23rd of September, at 9 p.m. to be precise, the nuclear power plant Doel 3 in Antwerp will be closed after a 40-year career. It’s the first of the seven nuclear plants in Belgium to close down in the context of the nuclear phase-out. Despite Flemish Minister of Energy Zuhal Demir’s call to […]
September 20, 2022
If Volkswagen offloads its natural gas stock, bought two years ago in a favorable trade, the company could be in for a multi-million euro deal. Or how the gas crisis has spawned an unforeseeable windfall for the financial balance of Europe’s biggest carmaker. In 2020, Volkswagen bought a massive gas supply, intended to prepare a […]
September 20, 2022
Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath calls upon his colleague carmakers to wake up and act now and not wait for policy changes to make the promises a reality that were ‘set in stone’ at COP26 last year. That was to have 100% zero-emission new car and van sales in leading markets by 2035 or earlier. To […]
September 16, 2022
A recent Greenpeace East Asia (GPEA) report ranking global car manufacturers on their environmental credentials has placed Toyota at the bottom of the list. According to the study, the Auto Environmental Guide 2022 discovered that fossil fuels still power 499 out of every 500 Toyota models sold worldwide. General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen performed best […]
September 15, 2022
During the European Week of Mobility – from 16 to 22 September – various events will take place all over Flanders and in Brussels. One of those events is Car-free Sunday, 18 September, in which thirty-two municipalities in Flanders and Brussels will participate. Among the participants: Mechelen, Lier, Aalst, Ostend, Leuven, Tongeren, Hasselt, and Turnhout. […]
September 12, 2022
Philippe Henry (Ecolo), the Walloon Minister for Climate, Energy, and Mobility, wants a speed reduction on the roads, including 100 km/hour instead of 120 on the highways. But it immediately gets a ‘njet’ by his coalition partners. The proposal is part of the Climate-Energy Plan, which should enable Wallonia to achieve its objectives in the […]
