A unified mobilization from Paris to Rome to tell the EU to: STOP using palm oil in fuels!

A coalition of NGOs has
mobilized today in five European capitals – Paris, Berlin, Madrid,
Rome and Brussels – to ask the European Union to put an end to
subsidies for palm oil being used in fuels.

In Paris, 75 people gathered
in front of the European Commission’s representation. Activists from
ANV COP21, Canopée, Friends of the Earth, One Voice, SumOfUs and
Greenpeace, have installed a “rainforest”, with fake oil
palms and people dressed as orangutans. The leaders of the
associations were even received in Paris inside of the premises of
the Commission, right in front of the National Assembly. During the
interview, it was confirmed to them that the message would be brought
to the European level.

The protesters also handed
over to the European Commission petitions from a dozen European
organizations – including Canopée, Friends of the Earth and SumOfUs
– having collected more than 500,000 signatures calling for the end
of European subsidies for palm oil in fuels.

Last May, the European
Parliament passed a law to end the incorporation of raw materials
into fuels that are “high risk” for the climate, such as
palm oil. This law proposes to cap and then eliminate controversial
products and asks fuel distributors for more transparency. The
European Commission must ratify that this will be a delegated act,
expected by the 1st February.

In France, agrofuels are
responsible for 75% of the palm oil consumed. According to NGOs,
these “biofuels” are in fact three times more harmful to
the climate than conventional fuels because of the deforestation they
cause. Oil palm plantations are ravaging the world’s last primary
tropical forests and the precious biodiversity they harbour.

For Muriel Arnal, founding
president of One Voice, “The fact that biofuels can contain palm
oil is unthinkable at so many levels … First of all, for orangutans
who are dying from the disappearance of their habitat and to add to
the absurdity of this situation, it’s all for ecological pretences!
How can one dare to turn a blind eye? “

For Sylvain Angerand,
president of Canopée Forêts Vivantes and spokesperson of the
federation of Friends of the Earth France for this campaign: “The
National Assembly has removed the tax advantage allowing the
incorporation of palm oil into fuels, but Total, owner of the
biorefinery in La Mède, has announced that it wants to call into
question the vote of the deputies by asking to be made exempt tax
duties. If the Commission does not settle this clearly and allows an
exception here, it is certain that Total will rush to abuse this
loophole”.

“The European Union has
been under pressure from lobbies for years to support the use of palm
oil in fuels, and has managed to move this industry from destruction
to an ecological alternative,” said Fatah Sadaoui , campaign
manager at SumOfUs. “Yet, hundreds of thousands of people have
mobilized to say to the EU: we do not want to be complicit in the
destruction of tropical forests, so we do not want more palm oil in
our fuel tanks. The European Commission must act as quickly as
possible to save the last orangutans, the tropical forests and the
communities that live and depend on them. “

Clément Sénéchal,
Greenpeace France’s Forests and Climate campaigner, says: “The
production of agrofuels in palm oil is ravaging forests, while they
are one of the best protections against climate change. It is urgent
to end this false solution. We are counting on the European
Commission today to hear the expectations of citizens and to resist
the calls from the multinationals, such as Total, who favour their
destructive profits. “

Additional Information

Pictures:
Please find photos of the
event here: https: //www.flickr.com/photos/ …

Petitions:
https: //actions.sumofus.org/a/ …
https: //www.act.transportenvir…

SumOfUs is a global group of
consumers, workers and investors campaigning for corporate
accountability. More than 14 million people have led more than 50
million shares worldwide with SumOfUs since its launch.
www.sumofus.org/fr

One Voice is a radical
association (taking the issues at the source), they have been
advocating for animals since 1995. Active on all fronts of animal
suffering in France and around the world, the association fights
against the exploitation of animals in circuses, dolphinariums and
laboratories, from fashion to hunting etc. It fights against strays
and works in consultation with the authorities to obtain exemplary
sentences of torturers of animals and place their victims into
safety. Nonviolent, One Voice believes in the uniqueness of fighting
and wants to be the same voice for animals and the planet. As animal,
human and environmental issues are closely linked, only a global
approach will provide a world living in peace for future generations!
www.one-voice.fr

Greenpeace is an international
network of independent organizations that act on the principles of
non-violence to protect the environment, biodiversity and promote
peace. It is based on a movement of committed citizens to build a
sustainable and equitable world. www.greenpeace.fr