Open letter: counting on new hydropower to accelerate renewable energy deployment in Europe is irresponsible

Ahead of the next political trilogue on the revision of the Renewable Energy Directive, more than 100 NGOs have signed this open letter to co-legislators from the European Parliament, European Commission and Council Presidency, asking them to exclude hydropower from go-to areas as well as to include sustainability criteria, recognizing that hydropower has direct impacts on freshwater ecosystems which must be mitigated. Since hydropower potential has been largely exploited in Europe, new hydropower would only make a small contribution to the energy transition, while causing immense damage to our rivers, lakes and wetlands.