Deutsche Bank and IFC accused of bankrolling Vietnam firms' land grabs
Two Vietnamese firms, bankrolled by Deutsche Bank and the International Finance Corporation, have been accused of land grabbing in Cambodia and Laos, causing widespread evictions, illegal logging and food insecurity, according to a recent report. The study, which concluded a year-long investigation by the watchdog Global Witness, names the privately owned Huang Anh Gia Lai and state-owned Vietnam Rubber Group, both producers of rubber, as the businesses behind the land grabs. Land has often been sold without villagers' consent or knowledge and without compensation, the report alleges. Families have been forced off their land or expected to work for the rubber plantation, although jobs were few and far between. (Guardian)
Palm oil company evicted after violation of RSPO standards
The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has evicted Indonesian palm oil giant Dutapalma Nusantara for violating key principles for sustainability. Dutapalma Nusantara was found to have violated three RSPO principles: converting deep peat for a plantation, clearing forest without a high conservation value (HCV) assessment, and using fire to open land. The company repeatedly failed to address the issues, which were raised by the Indonesia Community Mapping Network via RSPO's complaint system. The move comes less than three weeks after Greenpeace cited Dutapalma Nusantara as a case study for the failings of the RSPO to prevent deforestation. (Mongabay.com)
Policy & Research
Rwanda crafts e-waste law to reduce environmental impact
Rwanda is crafting a regulation to manage disposal of its mounting electronic waste to avert an environmental disaster. The national policy to guide the value chain management of e-waste will ensure Rwanda adheres to international standards on collection, disposal and recycling of waste from electronics. The law seeks to introduce an efficient e-waste management system that reduces negative environmental impacts from the no-longer-in-use electronics scattered around the country. Rwanda has witnessed a rapid growth in the inflow of mobile phones and computers and their peripherals, due to a liberalised Information and Communications Technology policy that saw some electronic goods exempted from taxes and duties. (The East African)
BMW says EU’s emissions standards are “impossible to meet”
BMW’s chairman Norbert Reithofer says the European Union’s (EU) strict vehicle emissions standards are “impossible to meet,” Australia’s Drive website reports. The EU plan would cut CO2 emission outputs to 95g/km by 2020, followed by a further 25 percent reduction by 2025. Reithfoer said that these targets couldn’t be met without huge investment, which would require government support, in expensive alternative drivetrain technology. He also said that the EU plan was “politically motivated and published without conducting any kind of feasibility study” and Europe, when compared to China and the US, under credits alternative drivetrains in its efforts to meet fuel emissions standards. (Environmental Leader)
Energy
Scotland awards £6.5m to develop energy sector skills
The Scottish Government has doubled the amount of funding it had promised to support a new energy skills centre to £6.5m. The funding will support a range of initiatives, including new wind turbine technician training courses, and plans to provide 1,000 transitional training places to help "up-skill" technicians and engineering professionals looking to transfer into the energy sector. The course will be delivered by Energy Skills Scotland (ESS), a body aiming to work with the energy industry to boost collaboration across the sector and encourage more women, young people, and mid-career professionals into the industry. First Minister Alex Salmond said Scotland's energy industry had the potential to offer 1,000s of jobs. (Business Green)
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