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7 november 2002
global 2000
cee bankwatch network
friends of the earth international
The EIB finances, the environment pays
the price
Vienna, November 7th, 2002
While the European Investment Bank (EIB)
welcomed guests and clients to its Forum 2002
"Countdown to enlargement - a practical
perspective", environmental NGOs from
Austria, the Netherlands and EU candidate
countries conveyed their own message: "The
EIB finances, the environment pays the
price!"
Global 2000, CEE Bankwatch Network and
Friends of the Earth International welcomed
the participants of the Forum with an
alternative 'Environmental Investment Bank'
in front of the Hotel Intercontinental. Large
posters depicted facts and fictions about the
EIB – the Bank's own statements were placed
side-by-side with facts on EIB-financed
projects in Central and Eastern Europe. The
NGOs are calling on the EIB to reform its
weak environmental and social standards and
performance in those areas, as well as for
increased transparency and proper
supervision..
The EIB has become the main financial player
in extending the Trans European Network into
CEE (Central and Eastern Europe), with
devastating consequences for the environment.
Dr. Heinz Hoegelsberger from GLOBAL 2000
(Friends of the Earth Austria) said, "Because
EU enlargement will increase traffic and
transport, we are calling for more investment
in railway infrastructure. The motorways that
the EIB plans to finance will damage the
environment as well as people's quality of
life - both in the candidate countries and in
adjacent Austria."
An EIB financed motorway in Poland provides
a bad precedent. Robert Cyglicki from Polish
Green Net (CEE Bankwatch Poland) said: "The
EIB is financing the A4 motorway in Poland, a
project which threatens valuable nature areas
and has already destroyed the cultural,
historical and natural heritage of Mt. Saint
Anna. We would expect the bank of the
European Union to pay more attention to
biodiversity protection and public
participation".
Peter Mihok from the Center for
Environmental Public Advocacy (CEE Bankwatch
Slovakia) adds, "When the EIB financed a
bridge in Bratislava, it made public
consultations a condition of the loan, but
this only happened after almost a year of
prodding and huge protests by the local
communities. Even then, the quality of the
public process is questionable and it seems
like little more than a 'tick the box'
exercise to appease the public."
This lack of public outreach is one
reflected in the Forum itself, the
environmental groups say. The Bank's website
promotes the Forum as an opportunity to
discuss "subjects of immediate interest to
the Bank's clients." Magda Stoczkiewicz, EIB
campaign leader for CEE Bankwatch Network and
Friends of the Earth International, said,
"This is typical for the EIB. The EIB is a
public institution using taxpayer money, but
its clients – mostly private Western
companies – are more important than the needs
of citizens of the countries served. And so
they hold a Forum in Vienna instead of Prague
or Budapest".
Janneke Bruil from Friends of the Earth
International added: "Many years of dialogue
with the EIB have so far resulted in only
limited improvement because resistance to
change at the Bank is so enormous. Maybe the
EIB needs to face more actions like the one
today to understand that the good old days of
carte blanche are over".
For more information, please contact:
Heinz Hoegelsberger, GLOBAL 2000: +43 1
812 57 30
Magda Stoczkiewicz, CEE Bankwatch Network /
Friends of the Earth International: +31 652
410 323
Robert Cyglicki, Polish Green Net: +48 609
686 793
Janneke Bruil, Friends of the Earth
International: +31 6 52 118 998
more
about the eib
more
photos and the posters
The EIB reform campaign is coordinated
by Friends of the Earth International and CEE
Bankwatch Network and supported by more than
30 groups all over Europe
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