The ‘Dirty Thirty’ are responsible for 393 million tonnes of CO2, which is equal to 10% of all EU CO2 emissions.

The top twelve CO2 emitters are fired with lignite, the rest mainly with hard coal. The WWF ranking is based on the 2006 data in the European Emissions Registry, the European Community Independent Transaction Log.

“The facts are clear,” says Stephan Singer, Head of WWF’s European Climate and Energy Unit. “The power sector needs to phase out dirty coal as soon as possible.” He pleaded that the EU must ensure that only those who clean up their power stations reap monetary awards.

WWF’s list of Europe’s Dirty Thirty Power plants as .pdf

European Community Independent transaction log