Extracts from the Nov-Dec 2002 edition of Renew
These extracts only represent about 25% of it

13. EUGENE

WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature, has linked up with other environmental and consumer organizations to form the European Green Electricity Network, or EUGENE, an independent labeling scheme with the aim of promoting common standards for green electricity in Europe. EUGENE sets out to remedy the confusing situation for electricity users that arises from several labeling bodies in Europe each having its own criteria and certification for green electricity. The WWF campaign focuses on five European nations that produce 75% of the EU's electricity-France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.

Certification and self-certification programs of electricity have proliferated in the marketplace, but there have been different and often conflicting definitions of ‘green electricity’ amongst the various private and government-sponsored labels in various EU countries. Much power carrying "green" labels in countries such as the UK and the Netherlands would not qualify because of over-generous definitions of renewable energy, WWF says. Giulio Volpi, WWF's climate policy officer, said that "Many products do not contribute to the creation of environmental additionality (i.e. the development of new green generation), but instead favor double-selling of electricity already paid for by consumers. The lack of minimum common standards cause significant confusion for the public and undermines the future uptake of green electricity."

WWF also wants to see additional moves by governments to allow consumers to distinguish between "green" and "brown" electricity, said Volpi. "Consumers have a right to know about energy sources and levels of pollution associated with the electricity they buy. It’s also time that policy makers promote public procurement of green power." One of the key aims is to prevent power from sources such as waste incineration benefiting from rapidly expanding consumer interest in clean energy as power markets liberalise. WWF hopes the criteria will eventually be adopted as the EU standard for green energy.

A report accompanying the launch attempts to quantify the carbon savings that would be generated if 10% of European business energy and 30% of public authority energy consumption met Eugene criteria. The result would be a 56m tonne cut - equivalent to Denmark’s total emissions in 1998. For more, see www.greenelectricitynetwork.org

Also see: http://www.panda.org/ http://www.panda.org/climate/green_elec_report.pdf http://www.panda.org/climate/green_elec_brochure.pdf