MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on protecting the environment by banning imports of biofuel into the EU
15.2.2017
Dominique Bilde
B8-0229/2017
Motion for a European Parliament resolution on protecting the environment by banning imports of biofuel into the EU
The European Parliament,
– having regard to Rule 133 of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas forests are being burned down wholesale in various parts of the world because the EU claims to be combating climate change through the use of biofuels;
B. whereas 1.6 million tonnes of palm oil – representing 5 500 km2 of oil palm plantations – ends up in the tanks of EU vehicles every year;
C. whereas in Indonesia alone, several thousand square kilometres of rainforest have been reduced to ashes by companies which clear the ground for new plantations using illegal slash-and-burn techniques rather than land-clearing equipment;
D. whereas this practice causes forest fires that not only devastate vegetation and wildlife but are also killing people because the resulting air pollution is up to 90 times the limits set by the World Health Organisation;
1. Calls on the Commission to end its policy of support for biofuels, with an exception for local production, as they are harmful to the environment, cause losses of biodiversity and undermine food security;
2. Calls on the Commission to impose a comprehensive ban on imports of palm-oil-based biofuel into the EU;
3. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council and the Member States.