Sustainability
![Forget Olympic athletes — will Parisians ever want to swim in the Seine?](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/15/GettyImages-2161775193-scaled.jpg)
Forget Olympic athletes — will Parisians ever want to swim in the Seine?
Getting the Seine ready for triathletes was hard. Getting it ready for the public by next year may be impossible.
![Athens wildfire kills 1 woman, destroys properties](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/13/GettyImages-2165981649-scaled.jpg)
Athens wildfire kills 1 woman, destroys properties
![EU imposes restrictions on former climate official over his new gas role](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=310,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/08/GettyImages-151280416-scaled.jpg)
EU imposes restrictions on former climate official over his new gas role
![The sonic boom is back for passenger aviation … maybe](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=302,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/07/GettyImages-1241991798-scaled.jpg)
The sonic boom is back for passenger aviation … maybe
![Huge lithium-mining protest triggers crisis meeting in Serbia](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=315,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/11/Serbia-protest-scaled.jpg)
Huge lithium-mining protest triggers crisis meeting in Serbia
![Here’s what the data shows on Seine pollution levels during the Olympics](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/09/GettyImages-1604186955-scaled.jpg)
Here’s what the data shows on Seine pollution levels during the Olympics
![Chinese electric vehicles face possible extra EU tariff hit](https://www.politico.eu/cdn-cgi/image/width=480,height=320,quality=80,onerror=redirect,format=auto/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/08/GettyImages-2102854499-scaled.jpg)
Chinese electric vehicles face possible extra EU tariff hit
‘Austria wants to remain in fossil ignorance’: Climate activist group to end campaign
Its protests — such as blocking streets and airports — have garnered a lot of attention.
Seine water quality ‘marginally acceptable’ at latest Olympics race, new samples show
The pollution levels in the Paris river’s murky waters have come under scrutiny during the Olympics, with several swimming competitions held in the river.
Cooking oil won’t be enough to make aviation sustainable
Pressure is growing to boost the production of sustainable aviation fuels, but each solution has big drawbacks.
Sauna festivals and dance marathons: Estonia knows how to spend EU money
Money from the EU’s Just Transition Fund will be used to diversify economic activity away from fossil fuels.
Seine well below contamination limit before Olympic triathlon, organizers say
The Paris Olympics initially delayed the race because of a bacteria spike in the famously toxic river, before moving ahead on Wednesday.
Heat wave blanketing Olympics ‘impossible’ without climate change
Scientists said a heatwave that has stretched across Mediterranean countries would have been 3 degrees Celsius cooler were it not for years of fossil fuel emissions.
Paris Olympics fiasco looms as Seine (still) unsafe for swimming
With the men’s triathlon postponed, the political dream of Olympic swimming in the Seine could go down the drain — literally.
Wolf 2 — von der Leyen 0: EU court insists on being careful with wolf hunting
Ursula von der Leyen’s furry nemesis strikes back.
Europe’s €10 trillion gamble
From Athens to Berlin, governments are coalescing around an idea to turbocharge the economy. If successful, it could be transformative ― but it’s a big if.
Von der Leyen’s farm dialogue buys time — but not answers to rural crisis
The European Commission chief launched a talking shop six months ago to defuse farm protests. Two participants discuss how it’s going with POLITICO.
No, the EV isn’t dead — just briefly comatose
Despite gloomy stories about the collapse in sales of electric vehicles, what’s really happening on the markets is more of a pause than a retreat.
The 11 MEPs who actually matter
Here are the EU lawmakers to keep your eye on in the new term.
Zut alors! No Olympic Games go off without a hitch, including Paris
The Paris Olympics are already experiencing their first faux pas, ranging from bad food to a mix-up of countries.
Yellen says $3T of fresh capital is needed annually to fight climate change
The Treasury secretary called the shift to a low-carbon global economy “the single greatest opportunity of the 21st century.”
Don’t bring a plastic bottle to the Olympics — unless you’re Coca-Cola
The Olympics sponsor is facing backlash for boasting about plastic-free drink options while still using millions of plastic bottles.
The EU says it wants food security. It really wants exports.
The latest Brussels buzzword is all about supporting farmers — but it throws consumers under the tractor.
EU’s first application for cultivated meat is for French foie gras
Paris startup Gourmey wants Europeans munching cell-grown pâté by 2026.
Germany wants a Brexit mega deal
Berlin wants to expand the British prime minister’s proposed security pact into a broader EU-UK “reset.”
‘Blood minerals’: EU accused of fueling conflict with Rwanda deal
Facing criticism it is stoking a humanitarian crisis, Brussels seeks to clarify the aims behind its minerals pact with Kigali.
Who will be the next European commissioners?
What we know so far about Ursula von der Leyen’s next top team.
The green leftie lawmaker taking on Europe’s economy
Aurore Lalucq hasn’t always been a fan of financial services firms.
This burger could kill the EU
Farmers furious about lab-grown meat are taking their fight to the heart of the European project.
Berlin inks lithium deal with Belgrade despite environmental concerns
The agreement would benefit carmakers like Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis, but is deeply unpopular in the country.
Von der Leyen threads the climate needle to keep her job
It was a love fest on election day. The fights begin after.