2025-02-19
BRUSSELS – Benelux Secretary General Frans Weekers calls for a EU-wide ban on the export of toxic fuels, in connection to the investigation supported by Journalismfund's Environmental Investigative Journalism grant programme.
Research by journalist collective Spit has shown that an export ban in one country means that exports from another country can continue. That "waterbed effect" must come to an end, according to Weekers"
- NOS.nl reported. You can listen to the NOS 1 radio fragment where the Benelux state secretary talks about the need to end the export of 'jungle juice'.
Weekers explains that since nearly a half of exported fuels destined to West Africa go through the ports of the Netherlands and Belgium, it is natural to expect that these countries will set an example in improving export regulations for these environmentally damaging substances.
The call to halt such exports was also mentioned in other media (1, 2).
The investigation mentioned by Weeker is a follow-up to another investigation on dirty diesel export by Apache.be and Spit investigative collective, which previously resulted in the Royal decree to tighten diesel export standards in Belgium.
Commenting on that decree, the office of Zakhia Khattabi, Belgian Minister for Climate, Environment, Sustainable Development and Green Deal, had specified that fuels intended for export will have to respect "the same quality standards as those applicable to fuels for the European market."
We all really need to follow up on our investigations and dossiers, after publication, and if necessary try to apply for a follow-up grant if we feel there is more in it.
Steven Vanden Bussche, one of the journalists who was part of both investigations
