Berlin, 03.03.2022: Civil society organisations call on MEPs to adopt the cross-group draft Battery Regulation on Wednesday 9 March 2022. The European Parliament's Environment Committee already presented a strong draft in February. It includes rules to make batteries more sustainable and repairable in the future and to anchor human rights and environmental due diligence obligations for companies in battery supply chains.
The new battery regulation is urgently needed and should replace the outdated battery directive from 2006. This had left out human rights and environmental protection in the mining of raw materials for batteries.
- “There is now a chance for more justice. The Battery Ordinance allows comprehensive due diligence obligations to be laid down by law. A long overdue step. Only ambitious rules for battery production can link human rights, environmental and climate protection", says Johanna Sydow of Germanwatch.
A week later, on March 17, the European member states position themselves. At present, there is controversy between individual countries as to when certain sustainability aspects of the regulation should enter into force.
- "Stop delaying and dilution! In the EU Council, the Federal Government must support the draft of the European Parliament's Committee on the Environment and a speedy implementation. Effective rules for human rights and environmental protection must not be put off in view of the massive expansion of e-mobility in Germany", comments Lara Louisa Siever of INKOTA.
With the immense promotion of electromobility and the expansion of battery production in Germany, the demand for raw materials for lithium, cobalt, bauxite and other metals is increasing. At the same time, this exacerbates the human rights and environmental risks posed by mining.
- “The Battery Regulation is an important milestone for more sustainable mobility. But a pure turnaround is not enough! A real change in mobility and raw materials must significantly reduce the number and size of cars. Only if mining is reduced can it be possible to strengthen human rights and environmental protection in the mining regions", stresses Michael Reckordt of PowerShift.
Contacts for media:
Lara Louisa Siever, Policy Officer on Raw Materials, Economy and Human Rights, INKOTA Network, 0157 344 74 810, siever@inkota.de, Twitter: @LaraLouisa16
Michael Reckordt, Resource Policy Officer at PowerShift, 0163 633 63 72, michael.reckordt@power-shift.de, Twitter: @MichaelReckordt
Johanna Sydow, Resource Policy Officer Germanwatch, 0176 260 95 273 sydow@germanwatch.org Twitter: @JohannaSydow
Stefan Küper, Germanwatch Press Spokesman, 0151 252 110 72
presse@germanwatch.org
