Żminijietna - Voice of the Left has welcomed the decision by the EU to launch a climate and energy package to help tackle climate change and global warming.
The leftist NGO said, however, that the EU's strategy on energy will not solve the looming ecological dangers that scientists are predicting and will not help to reduce social inequality on a European and global level.
Żminijietna is in favour of a centrally-planned, state-owned-energy supply. Climate change requires realism, social justice and urgency.
"Malta has a global obligation to speak up for serious climate change goals, as small islands are among the societies likely to be worst hit by climate change. The recent study on rising sea-levels in the Mediterranean should serve as a stark warning".
The EU package aims to cut gas emissions by 20 per cent by 2020, compared to 1990 levels.
Under this package, Malta has to obtain 10 per cent of all its energy needs from renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind energy, and increase its use of biofuels to up to 10 per cent of all transport fuel. Malta may also increase its CO2 emissions by five per cent over the 2005 baseline.
"We recognise that the EU, compared to the USA, is attempting to tackle climate change. Yet, most of its proposals are subject to criticism. The emissions trading scheme renders pollution into a marketable product, whereby major polluters can buy off their pollution rather than reduce their emissions.
"The biofuel proposal is socially and environmentally dangerous, both in terms of emissions resulting from biofuel, as well as the fact that biofuels are obtained from crops that are replacing crops for food in poor countries.
"Finally, the EU proposals are made within a capitalist framework of endless production, commodification, and technological quick-fixes, which, ultimately, do not solve the problems of wasteful consumption and social inequality," the NGO said.
Profound changes are required to tackle climate change. These, it added, include prioritised investment in accessible, cheaper and efficient public transport, thus reducing the need for private transportation; focusing on production, which is as localised as possible, thus moving fewer goods shorter distances; better planning of cities and waste management that is based on less waste and package.