Vote on Critical Raw Materials Act – PowerShift calls for improvements
Berlin/Brussels, 14 July 2023:
Next week, the Environment Committee [ENVI] and the International Trade Committee [INTA] will vote in the European Parliament on the Critical Raw Materials Act. The EU wants to ensure the supply of critical raw materials.
Our raw material experts comment on this as follows:
Hannah Pilgrim, Coordinator of AK Raw Materials “Critical for whom? The EU is currently missing the opportunity to implement the necessary raw material transition. The draft of the EU Commission lacks binding requirements for a reduction of the globally unjust and ecologically unsustainable consumption of raw materials. The European Parliament must now react urgently.”
Michael Reckordt, team leader in raw materials policy at PowerShift:
“The mining sector is a high-risk human rights sector. Many EU regulations in recent years, from the Conflict Minerals Regulation to the Battery Regulation, underline this. The Commission's draft of the Raw Materials Act is therefore a surprising step backwards. Parliament urgently needs to improve. Certifications of mines without complaint mechanisms for those affected are not credible. Partnerships with resource-rich countries without the involvement of civil society ignore their own responsibilities. And strategic projects that are whipped through quickly do not help to increase public acceptance and reduce risks for people and the environment. On the contrary, human rights and environmental protection must take precedence over industry’s private supply interests.”
Position paper of more than 40 European human rights and environmental organizations and German translation:
English: https://power-shift.de/positionspapier-rohstoffgesetz/
English: https://power-shift.de/position-paper-critical-raw-material-act/
