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Government officials accused of ’schmooze-athon’ with Shell | Environment | The Guardian
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/aug/17/government-officials-schmooze-athon-shell

Senior Whitehall officials from 10 government departments and agencies attended exclusive “training courses” laid on by Shell over two days at its London headquarters, according to documents released by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (Decc) following a freedom of information request.

The documents show that in June this year and last, “30-40 mid- to senior-level civil servants” attended the two-day “Shell energy course for Whitehall”, laid on at the energy giant’s expense at its UK head office on London’s South Bank.

parce que déjà...

Big energy users get seven times more Treasury meetings than green sector
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/jul/23/green-companies-treasury-meetings-energy

In total, Treasury ministers have held 17 meetings with either green campaign groups or clean energy lobbyists since May 2010. In comparison, they have met with representatives from fossil fuel and energy companies; airports and airlines; and the motoring lobby and car manufacturers on 119 occasions over the same period.

et en France ?

#énergie #lobby #pétrole #énergie_renouvelable

Arctique Groenland Matières premières Terres rares

The rare earth riches buried beneath Greenland’s vast ice sheet | Environment | guardian.co.uk

►http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/jul/31/rare-earth-greenland?newsfeed=true

Small group of 17 elements is in extraordinary demand, but potential wealth must be balanced against environmental responsibilities.

Detail of basalt, a volcanic rock found on Heart mountain, Uummannaq, North-Greenland, Greenland
Detail of basalt, a volcanic rock found on Heart mountain near Uummannaq, Greenland. Photograph: Alamy

Inside every wind turbine, inside computers, phones and other high-tech equipment from medical scanners to electric cars, are materials known as “rare earths”. This small group of 17 elements are in extraordinary demand – but their supply is limited, and most of the existing sources have already been snapped up by China in its quest for ever more rapid economic growth.

Last month China – which controls more than 90% of the reserves of these essential elements – warned that its supplies were diminishing, despite quotas to limit exports. Beijing’s top officials said in a memo: “After more than 50 years of excessive mining, China’s rare earth reserves have kept declining and the years of guaranteed rare earth supply have been reducing.”

Arctique Groenland Matières premères Environnement Europe

Europe looks to open up Greenland for natural resources extraction | Environment | guardian.co.uk

►http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/jul/31/europe-greenland-natural-resources?newsfeed=true

UE Jose Manuel Barroso with Greenland Prime Minister Kuupik Kleist
European commission chairman, Jose Manuel Barroso, (right) and Greenland prime minister, Kuupik Kleist. The EU sees potential in a massive opening up of mining operations across the world’s biggest island. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Europe is looking to open a new frontier in the ever more urgent quest for new natural resources – the pristine icy wastes of Greenland.

Oil and gas have been the focus of exploitation so far – but the EU sees just as much potential in a massive opening up of mining operations across the world’s biggest island, according to Antonio Tajani, the European commission’s vice-president and one of the most powerful politicians in the union. He called the move “raw material diplomacy”.

Mark Kennedy controversy: activists invited to challenge convictions | guardian.co.uk
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/jul/03/mark-kennedy-activists-challenge-convictions

Keir Starmer QC said he had invited 29 activists to challenge their convictions at the court of appeal after concluding that a senior prosecutor may have withheld vital evidence about Kennedy from their trial. He also announced a Scotland Yard review all of the police officer’s deployments, saying: “What happened in cases involving Mark Kennedy cannot be allowed to happen again.”

The campaigners stopped a train carrying about 1,000 tonnes of coal to the Drax power station in North Yorkshire in 2008. Kennedy is understood to have infiltrated the group, assisting them with a reconnaissance mission and later driving some campaigners to a rendezvous. They were convicted in 2009.

#environnement “#ecoterrorisme” #surveillance #police #répression

Energy smart meters are a threat to privacy, says watchdog
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/jul/01/household-energy-trackers-threat-privacy

The EDPS warns that “while the Europe-wide rollout of smart metering systems may bring significant benefits, it will also enable massive collection of personal data”.

#compteur_electrique