State of the Union: Spain heatwave, offshore wind plans & pharma rules

This week noticed record-breaking temperatures in Europe, with 40 levels Celsius recorded in Spain — the most popular temperature ever noticed in April in peninsular Spain. 

In some areas, it was anticipated to be as much as 20 levels increased than the typical.

This prompted fears of wildfires in a nation already so dry that some farmers have opted to not plant crops in any respect.

“We live in an alarming state of affairs, not solely due to this agricultural season, which could be very difficult,” Eduardo Vera Canuto, a Spanish rice farmer mentioned.

“We’re not going to have the ability to sow rice. We have now had 5 seasons and this may be the sixth, with many difficulties.”

Do you suppose this isn’t political? Effectively, suppose once more. The Spanish authorities requested emergency funds from the European Fee to assist its farmers.

The warmth wave might result in new disruptions within the EU’s agricultural markets, already on tenterhooks after the grain disaster sparked by the warfare in Ukraine.

Coping with excessive climate will now be a part of Europe’s local weather coverage which additionally contains safeguarding power safety.

North Sea international locations band collectively

Within the Belgian port metropolis of Ostend on Monday, 9 coastal international locations agreed to spice up wind farm capability within the North Sea.

The concept is to spice up offshore wind energy era to 120 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 and to not less than 300 GW by 2050.

Fatih Birol, the manager director of the Worldwide Vitality Company (IEA) advised Euronews that the realm is ripe for manufacturing.

“The potential we’ve got within the North Sea by way of offshore wind is big,” Birol mentioned.

“It’s the very best quality offshore wind on the earth and the quantity of potential we’ve got is sufficient to energy present Europe’s electrical energy demand by six instances, there’s a big potential there.”

Europe’s give attention to renewables like wind energy is a component of a bigger technique to change into power unbiased and to attain the bloc’s local weather targets, like phasing out fossil fuels.

However Europe’s frantic efforts to exchange Russian fuel final yr led to the precise reverse: funding into and growth of fossil fuel imports and infrastructure – with probably devastating penalties for the EU’s Inexperienced Deal and the local weather.

That is an accusation Greenpeace makes in a report introduced this week known as “Who Income from Warfare: How Gasoline Firms Capitalise on the warfare in Ukraine”.

In an interview, Silvia Pastorelli, an EU local weather and power coverage specialist at Greenpeace, criticised the bloc’s response to the battle. 

“In a nutshell, the EU’s response to a short-term power disaster is a long-term fossil gasoline lock-in with decade-long fuel contracts,” Pastorelli advised Euronews.

“Our research finds that EU governments are planning to construct a lot liquefied pure fuel (LNG) import capability, that, if constructed, it will improve the EU’s greenhouse fuel emissions by as much as an equal of 950 million tonnes of CO2 every year.

She added that any new LNG terminals, which is not going to instantly begin working are merely not needed. 

“It worsens the local weather disaster, strains the pockets of fossil gasoline corporations, which we all know have been making document earnings and delays the required transition to a renewable power system and makes it tougher and costlier for folks. 

“This power disaster has made it painfully clear that what we consider power safety is outdated and can’t shield folks from the shocks of a system that’s primarily based totally on fossil fuels. 

“Fossil fuel must be phased out by 2035 on the newest. So, now could be the time to rethink power safety.”

Medication guidelines overhaul

On Wednesday, Brussels unveiled its greatest reform to the EU’s pharmaceutical laws in 20 years, sparking anger from the multi-billion euro trade.

The proposal, which had beforehand been delayed, goals to extend medication accessibility and affordability for EU residents in addition to battle towards resistance to antibiotics.

However making the medicine extra accessible and reasonably priced means slashing the usual regulatory safety interval that large pharma at the moment enjoys, one thing pharma corporations lobbied intensively towards.

“A brief technique to describe [the proposal] is the triple-A”, mentioned Schinas. 

These stand for entry, affordability and availability. Entry to medicine, each modern and generics, has been one of many principal challenges for the Fee as shortages improve throughout Europe.

“We would like our residents everywhere in the European Union to have the identical stage of entry to medicine. It’s not a secret that large member states to this point had higher probabilities to acquire sure medicine sooner,” the Vice-President added.

For Well being Commissioner Stella Kyriakides, the present state of affairs is “unacceptable”.

“Sufferers within the Western and larger member states have entry to 90% of newly permitted medicines. Within the Jap and smaller member states the quantity is as little as 10%. Residents wait from months to 2 or three years for these [new] medicines”.

Nathalie Moll, director normal of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, reacted to the proposals in an announcement, saying:

“The method set out within the pharmaceutical laws penalising innovation if a drugs just isn’t obtainable in all member states inside two years is basically flawed and represents an unattainable goal for corporations.”