Message From the Editor
This week, investigative reporter Clare Carlile revealed the meetings happening between big agriculture and anti-green lawmakers in Europe.
DeSmog revealed that agriculture lobby groups have been in constant contact with a small group of influential European politicians, holding an average of over two meetings a week while the bloc negotiated flagship reforms to protect nature and climate. This comes out to about eight times as often as non-governmental groups representing public interests.
Groups that were granted an audience included the world’s four largest pesticide firms Bayer, BASF, Corteva and Syngenta along with fertilizer firms Yara and OCP Group, trade groups that represent the meat and dairy industry and farming unions allied with industrial interests, such as Copa Cogeca.
Down in Louisiana, Sara Sneath reported on Calcasieu Pass’s unusually long testing phase which allows the facility to emit more toxins while making huge earnings.
Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass liquid natural gas (LNG) export terminal is in the longest ever commissioning period for a plant of its kind. The 19-month duration has enabled the company to sell LNG on the spot market at a much higher price than if the plant was fully operational.
But now, four companies — including BP and Shell — who say Venture Global hasn’t delivered on its long-term contracts have filed for arbitration, and critics are asking if the firm is profiting from the polluting plant.
In other news, John Valliant was nominated for a National Book Award for his book “Fire Weather.” Be sure to check out Geoff Dembicki’s interview with Valliant from earlier this spring.
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Thanks,
Brendan DeMelle
Executive Director
P.S. Investigative journalism like this is made possible by readers like you. Can you donate $10 or $20 right now to support more of this essential work?
Image credit: Franc Bogovič – personal wordpress
Revealed: Meetings Blitz Between Big Ag and Anti-Green Lawmakers in Europe
— By Clare Carlile (12 min. read) —
Agriculture lobby groups have been in constant contact with a small group of influential European politicians, holding an average of over two meetings a week while the bloc negotiated flagship reforms to protect nature and climate, DeSmog can reveal.
Between January 2020 and July 2023, over 400 meetings took place between industry and key members of the European Parliament (MEPs) who have been at the forefront of efforts to stall reforms since the Farm to Fork strategy launched in 2020.
Is Venture Global’s Louisiana LNG Plant Profiting from Pollution?
— By Sara Sneath (4 min. read) —
Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass liquid natural gas (LNG) export terminal is in the longest ever commissioning period for a plant of its kind. The 19-month duration has enabled the company to sell LNG on the spot market at a much higher price than if the plant was fully operational.
Now, experts say the unprecedented delay raises the possibility that Venture Global is purposefully slow walking the commissioning process and keeping the plant unfit and unclean to make more money. Four companies — including BP and Shell — who say Venture Global hasn’t delivered on its long-term contracts have filed for arbitration, and critics are asking if the firm is profiting from the polluting plant.
Carbon Capture Is Risky But We Need It, Say Tory MPs At Chevron-Sponsored Event
— By Phoebe Cooke (4 min. read) —
Conservative MPs gave resounding backing to the fossil fuel industry this week at a conference event paid for by U.S. oil giant Chevron.
The panel “Can fossil fuel companies play a role in the energy transition?” was hosted on Tuesday in Manchester by Conservative think tank Bright Blue and Chevron.
Revealed: Fossil Fuel Giants Have Committed £40.4 Million to UK Universities Since 2022
— By Max Colbert (8 min. read) —
Major fossil fuel firms have committed tens of millions in finance to UK universities since 2022, DeSmog can reveal.
Many of these commitments have been accepted by institutions that have actively pledged to divest from oil and gas companies.
Influential Conservative Think Tank’s Funders Include BP, Shell and Equinor
— By Peter Geoghegan (3 min. read) —
Onward has had a meteoric rise. Since its inception in 2018, five of its founding advisory board members have taken roles in Conservative cabinets and its reports regularly feature in print and broadcast media.
Onward, which describes itself as “a modernising think tank” with “bold and practical ideas for the centre right”, was ubiquitous at Tory conference in Manchester this week. It hosted two dozen fringe sessions, and it will be out in force at Labour conference in Liverpool this weekend.
From the Climate Disinformation Database: COPA–COGECA
COPA–COGECA is the combination of two major European farming lobby groups: COPA (Committee of Professional Agricultural Organizations), which represents farmers, and COGECA (General Confederation of Agricultural Cooperatives in the European Union), which represents European agri-cooperatives. The two groups formed in the late 1950s, and merged in December 1962. COPA–COGECA describes itself as “the united voice of farmers and their cooperatives in the European Union”. COPA-COGECA is one of the most active lobby groups in the EU. COPA-COGECA has been a vocal opponent of binding targets included in the EU’s sustainable food Farm to Fork strategy. The group has also lobbied for the reauthorization of the controversial pesticide glyphosate, which critics suggest is a carcinogen and causes widespread harm to the environment.
Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database and Koch Network Database.
