BRUSSELS, March 18 (Reuters) – The European Union’s second-highest court on Wednesday rejected an appeal seeking to force the European Commission to review its decision to label investments in bioenergy as sustainable, in a case brought by campaign groups who argued the fuel is not climate‑friendly enough to merit the label.
In its ruling, the General Court of the Court of Justice of the EU sided fully with the Commission and upheld all parts of its decision. The judges found that the Commission could not be faulted for declining to align the “taxonomy” criteria with Paris climate agreements obligations beyond what EU law requires.
Bioenergy is derived from burning wood or other biomass such as crop residues and animal waste. Alongside wind and solar power, it is among the energy sources labeled as sustainable by the EU’s taxonomy system, which restricts which investments can be labeled as climate-friendly.
(Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro and Kate Abnett; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
