European Union plans on financing nuclear and gas plants spark anger

Cooling towers of the nuclear power plant of Gundremmingen, Bavaria (Stefan Puchner/dpa via AP)

Draft European Union plans that would allow nuclear energy and gas to remain part of the bloc’s path to a climate-friendly future have come under immediate criticism from both environmentalists and some governing political parties in EU member nations.

In draft conclusions seen by The Associated Press, the EU’s executive commission proposes a classification system for defining what counts as an investment in sustainable energy. Under certain conditions, it would allow gas and nuclear energy to be part of the mix.