WWF called on Thursday 7 January for an immediate review of the draft National Recovery and Resilience Plans (NRRPs) of Central and Eastern European Member States through a transparent and extensive consultation process with all stakeholders and citizens, otherwise the status quo could threaten the EU’s green recovery, the NGO said.
“Most of these plans were decided and elaborated behind closed doors, and demonstrated preference for old and unsustainable projects, pre-crisis approaches, and lack of ambition”, comments Irene Lucius, Regional Conservation Director, WWF Central and Eastern Europe (WWF CEE), in a statement.
Countries such as Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia have already published the first version of their plan. Hungary has not yet done so.
WWF CEE calls on the governments of this region to: - announce public consultation mechanisms with detailed and realistic timetables; - show vision by moving away from the status quo to promote climate and environmental investments in line with EU taxonomy.
The NGO asks the European Commission to: - require a summary of the NRRP preparatory consultations and assess the multi-level dialogue with local authorities, social partners and civil society organisations; - act as a guardian against threats to nature conservation arising from unsustainable investments proposed in the NRRPs, for example in energy, agricultural and hydroelectric power infrastructure. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)