Held hostage by the political vacuum and by a man who for twenty years puts his personal interests before the collective interest of the country. This is the tragic marshy situation in which is Italy.
Italy is held hostage by the political vacuum
Society
Interview with David Newman: The Italian approach in reducing the use of plastic bags
Marine litter caused by plastic bags is threatening the oceans and causing already an ecological disaster . The European Commission is pushing for an ambitious resource efficiency agenda and is struggling to reduce landfills and enforce waste prevention across all Member States. Europe is a leader in the bioeconomy. What do all these facts have in common? More than we think. Italy demonstrated to the world that substituting traditional plastic bags with reusable and biodegradable and compostable ones can be, even at times of crisis, a solution to trigger separate collection rates, enhance waste prevention and unleash new investments in ground breaking technologies. We discussed the Italian case study and the recent reaction of UK against the Italian ban on plastic bags recently reported by several UK media with David Newman, Secretary General of Assobioplastiche, the Italian Bioplastic and Biodegradable and Compostable material Association.
Interview by Isabella Dalbelgio
(from Brussels)
Editorial: Together for the Bioeconomy Revolution
Dear Readers,
thank you. You are more and more every day to read Il Bioeconomista, from all over the world. And that flatters us and encourages us to move forward with our project for an online journal that has in the bioeconomy its inspiring principle. You are a signal that the world is in turmoil, that the search for a world free from fossil fuels, a post-petroleum world, is increasingly an utopia that has decided to roll up its sleeves to become reality every day. The path is still long, but the road is mapped out and we can’t go back.
The Italian new government and the bioeconomy: everything needs to change, so everything can stay the same
Italy’s new government has been sworn in, ending two months of political deadlock, after politicians agreed on Saturday to form a three-party coalition, which will also include technocrats in key positions.
The impression, however, is to be faced with a handful of men and women engaged in a desperate defense of a power gained in many ways fortuitously, on the verge of sinking at any time in front of a chaos which is hard to dominate. With Silvio Berlusconi came out again as big winner and ready to pull the plug as soon as the polls will comfort him about the possibility of winning elections (even with the current electoral law, which does not guarantee the governability and for no other called by its author, Senator of Lega Nord Roberto Calderoli, like “a crap”). In short, it seems that once again in Italy, to quote from The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, “everything needs to change, so everything can stay the same”. Continue reading
Chatham House: UK biofuel policy may need to be modified
UK biofuel policy may need to be modified. To say it is a report published by Chatham House, a british think tank focused on “Costs and Consequences of Expanding Biofuel Use in the United Kingdom”. According to Rob Bailey, author of the report, “in its present form the RTFO (Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation, editor’s note) may not be an appropriate instrument for achieving the RED (Renewable Energy Directive, editor’s note) target economically. Its volumetric target incentivizes suppliers to minimize cost per litre by supplying ethanol, thereby also minimizing the amount of energy supplied by biofuels. This runs counter to the objective of the RED to increase the share of energy from biofuels.
La bioeconomia salverà il mondo? La missione è possibile. Al museo dei bambini di Roma
La Bioeconomia salverà il mondo? È il tema proposto dalla mostra che sarà inaugurata il 12 Aprile a Explora, il museo dei bambini di Roma.
Ricercatori ed esperti di musei e science centres europei – Austria, Estonia, Germania, Italia e Gran Bretagna – hanno collaborato al progetto, finanziato dal 7° Programma Quadro della Commissione europea.
“Mission possible” è una mostra interattiva che verrà inaugurata a Roma, prima tappa del tour europeo per far conoscere la Bioeconomia al grande pubblico.
Un governo che guarda al futuro. Puntando sulla bioeconomia
Riuscirà l’Italia ad avere un governo? La missione sembra impossibile. Prima delle elezioni, paventando quanto poi si è avverato, ovvero l’ingovernabilità del paese, abbiamo anche espresso il sogno di avere come ministro dello Sviluppo economico, Catia Bastioli, Ceo di Novamont. Subito dopo la stessa Bastioli è stata inserita da Michele Santoro (questo ovviamente ci fa piacere) in un suo ipotetico governo di alto profilo. Il ministero che Santoro ha assegnato a Bastioli è quello dell’Ambiente. Il che fa emergere bene come la nostra visione dell’ambiente e della bioeconomia sia di traino dello sviluppo economico ma anche sociale del paese. Nel giochino del nuovo possibile governo si stanno cimentando un po’ tutti gli organi d’informazione.
Proviamo così anche noi de Il Bioeconomista a proporre un governo di alto profilo per il paese, che abbia nella propria agenda politica tra le priorità lo sviluppo della bioeconomia e dell’occupazione.
Continue reading
Il futuro della Vinyls di Porto Marghera è nella chimica verde
Si affaccia un futuro nella bioeconomia per la Vinyls di Porto Marghera. Il Gruppo Mossi & Ghisolfi – secondo fonti venete – è interessato all’acquisizione dello stabilimento veneziano della società specializzata nella produzione di Pvc, in amministrazione straordinaria dal 2009. Ieri il Tribunale di Venezia ha prorogato di altri due mesi l’amministrazione controllata, un periodo necessario ai due commissari Mauro Pizzigati e Giorgio Simeone per trovare un accordo con i potenziali acquirenti, che rappresenti non solo la soluzione migliore per l’impianto ma anche per i 132 lavoratori in cassa integrazione straordinaria a zero ore. Oltre al Gruppo Mossi & Ghisolfi interessato allo stabilimento veneto della Vinyls è l’Oleificio Medio Piave.
Waiting for the elections, dreaming Bastioli as the next Minister of Economic Development
It’s not just because she shows great vision and strategic economic sense (read the interview with our journal in this regard). It’s not just because she knows how to reconcile economic growth, creation of new skilled jobs and environmental sustainability. It’s certainly not just because she is a woman in a country, Italy, where women find thousand obstacles to occupy top positions in the economy, academia and politics. It’s not only for these reasons but for sure these are enough to dream Catia Bastioli, the current Ceo of Novamont and chairwoman of the Kyoto Club Italy, as the next Italian Minister of Economic Development.
Danish BioRefining Alliance: “We need the EU to speed up and decide on a better regulation with targets for 2G biofuels”
“By having the first full scale 2G biorefinery (Mossi & Ghisolfi’s Biorefinery in Crescentino, editor’s note) I am convinced that Italy will play one of the important and leading roles in 2G bioeconomy on a European level. We hope very much that the next full scale plant will be in Denmark.The EU countries have a unique chance to be first movers and preferred partners in the future global bioeconomy”. To say it, in this interview, is Anne Grete Holmsgaard, the director of the BioRefining Alliance, the Danish partnership organization working to promote 2G biofuels and bioeconomy in Europe. Denmark has a leading role in the European bioeconomy. With Anne Grete Holmsgaard we talk about BioRefining Alliance, but especially bioeconomy and European policies to foster it. “We need – says the BioRefining Alliance’s director – the EU to speed up and decide on a better regulation with targets for 2G biofuels, which will give a very clear signal to investors.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
IL BIOECONOMISTA 