The Clean Energy and Climate Change Association announced on Monday that the Council of the European Union rejected a request based on the Aarhus Convention to urgently return Romania’s accession to the Schengen area. Agenda of the Council of Justice and Internal Affairs. The request was submitted in view of the offensive nature of Austria’s decision of December 8, 2022, which would have been adopted with non-compliance with environmental legislation, the association notes. Under these conditions, the EU Council and Austria will be sued at the Court of Justice of the European Union.

“In order to protect the EU as a community based on the rules of law, and taking into account the aim of our association to provide expert knowledge on climate issues, including environmental legislation and conventions, we will appeal to the Council of the EU and Austria in the Court of Justice of the European Union, in objectivity which we believe,” the association reports.

According to her, almost a month before the COP 28 meeting in Dubai, given that we are already in a climate crisis, the Council of the European Union is ignoring tons of greenhouse gas emissions generated by trucks that are additionally waiting at checkpoints. borders

Customs machines will generate more than 46,000 tons of CO2 per year

In a petition of the Association for Clean Energy and the Fight against Climate Change, submitted to the European Parliament in January, it was shown that the non-adherence of Romania and Bulgaria to Schengen affects Europe’s fight against climate change, writes Juridice.ro. “According to a reputable independent study by the Big 4, more than 46,000 tons of CO2 per year are produced by cars, buses and trucks forced to wait at the border due to the decision to delay the entry of Romania and Bulgaria into the Schengen Agreement. This is equivalent to more than 310,000 tons of CO2 per year. mature trees or more than 56 million kWh of coal-fired electricity,” the petition reads.

“The Council of the EU also informed us that the subject of Romania and Bulgaria’s accession to the Schengen zone is still being discussed in the Council,” the representatives of the association also noted.

It also shows that everyone (and primarily the EU Council) must be aware of the climate crisis we are in, and the fact that this climate crisis, according to the UN, is the main driver of migration.

During the preparation of this response, the General Secretariat of the Council of the EU requested, in accordance with the Aarhus Convention, a postponement to carry out an in-depth analysis and consulted with all interested delegations, including the delegation of Romania, reports the Association for Clean Energy and Combating Climate Change. .

The Aarhus Convention gives members of the public (individuals and associations representing them) the right to access information about decisions made on environmental issues and to participate in those decisions, as well as to claim damages if they do not comply with these rights.

The convention is based on the premise that environmental protection will improve if the public is aware of and involved in environmental issues. The Convention is designed to help protect the right of every person of the present and future generations to live in an environment that is consistent with their health and well-being. To this end, the Convention provides for actions in three areas:

• ensuring public access to environmental information held by state authorities;

• stimulation of public participation in decision-making affecting the environment;

• expanding the conditions of access to justice on environmental issues.