Austria has challenged in court the European Union’s decision to designate as “green” energy from nuclear power or gas, Austrian Climate Minister Leonora Gewessler announced in Vienna on Monday, as quoted by Reuters and Agerpres.

Announcing the action at the European Court of Justice (ECJ), she said that while she generally supports the EU’s classification system for sustainable sources, she opposes the idea of ​​considering power plants powered by such sources as sustainable.

“I strongly oppose backdoor attempts to label nuclear power and gas as green,” she said.

Last year, the European Commission decided to label nuclear, hydro and wind-based electricity production as environmentally friendly, and from 2023 some nuclear or gas-fired power plants will be classified as such.

In July of this year, the European Parliament voted for a resolution in support of this proposal.

Inclusion in the EU classification system for sustainable activities aims to support the identification of such projects for investment purposes.

Austria has no nuclear power plants

The lawsuit against the European Commission is based on substantial legal arguments, said Leonor Gewessler, according to which, according to the new classification, a sustainable energy source should not lead to worsening environmental problems.

However, she said nuclear power carries “incalculable risks”, highlighting the nuclear disasters at Chernobyl and Fukushima and concerns about the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, which is currently under Russian occupation.

And the burning of natural gas produces a huge amount of CO2, the Austrian minister also said.

Leonor Gevesler also pointed out that Brussels exceeded its powers, as such a political decision on nuclear energy with such strong consequences is not within its competence. She recalled that Luxembourg had already expressed its support for Austria in this case and said that other countries could do the same.