Brussels, 18/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - The appeal for a rejection launched by MEPs at the EPs environment committee has fallen on barren ground. On Wednesday 17 December in Strasbourg, the European Parliament approved the European Commission's draft directive establishing a calculating method and information requirements for calculating greenhouse gas emissions from road fuels in Europe, such as petrol and diesel. The vote, however, was very close, with 337 votes for, 325 against, with 48 abstentions.
The draft directive has been submitted to examination procedure and seeks to help transport fuel suppliers in Europe implement the obligation incumbent upon them to reduce the level of carbons by 6% in fuels used on Europe's roads by 2020, in compliance with directive 98/70/EC.
The environment committee and environmental NGOs criticised the fact that the text (replacing a 2011 proposal, which did not obtain support from the member states) is not encouraging clean fuels and is putting conventional fossil fuels such as crude oil and very dirty carbon such as shale sands and bituminous products in Canada, on a level playing field (EUROPE 11213). (AN)