The date could not be more appropriate: Until Friday, the Federal Ministry for the Environment is celebrating “Climate Adaptation Week”, which is all about how we deal with the climate crisis. At the same time, neighboring countries to the east are drowning in extreme rain and floods that have so far killed at least 16 people and devastated large swathes of land. And Steffi Lemke’s ministry also has to contend with a harsh ruling from the Federal Court of Auditors, which criticizes one of the central climate action projects of the traffic light government: the “Natural Climate Protection Action Programme”. We take a closer look at these two issues today.
In the future, however, we also want to look more often at where things are not in a mess, but at what constructive approaches there are to the climate crisis. To this end, we are starting today with a loose series on climate solutions. To kick things off, Nick Nuttall explains the potential of floating wind turbines.
We also have updates on the scandal surrounding the climate project fraud scheme in China and explain why Saxon companies call for more speed in the energy transition. Concerning COP29, the omens are not good at the moment – dozens of European parliamentarians have been banned from entering the country. We’ll keep you updated on this too.
Your Lisa Kuner
Feature
Flooding: How adaptation fails when politicians look the other way
The extreme rainfall and flooding in Austria, the Czech Republic and Romania have also left their mark on climate policy. The current disaster shows how quickly even highly developed countries are overwhelmed by the consequences of the crisis. It makes it clear how limited the success of adaptation to climate change has been so far. And it is bringing the crisis back into the public eye – even if the implementation of climate policy is currently faltering in European politics and business and has so far been practically a non-issue in elections.
During the extreme rainfall, many rivers in Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Romania quickly burst their banks. At least 16 people were killed, large areas were flooded and extensive property damage was caused. The cause of the continuing rainfall is the low-pressure area “Boris”, which brought a lot of moisture from the extremely warm Mediterranean to Eastern Europe and was held there by stable highs. According to a brief analysis by the ClimaMeter platform, climate change has played an important role in this development.
Lower Austria is a disaster area
In Austria, at least two people died in floods in their homes and one firefighter was killed in action. Only half of the students in Vienna made it to class on Monday. Subways and long-distance trains were at a standstill. The whole of Lower Austria was declared a disaster area and around ten dams were breached.
In the provincial capital of St. Pölten, for example, it rained more than 350 millimeters per square meter within 96 hours – twice as much as during the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley. For some places, this is already the third so-called “hundred-year flood”, after 2013 and 2002. Such weather conditions are already occurring 13 percent more frequently due to global warming and it is raining 20 percent more, Geosphere Austria announced shortly before the disaster.
The danger increases with climate change. Ignoring this seems to be the best campaign tactic in Austria so far for the national elections on Sept. 29. The current leader of the polls is the right-wing populist FPÖ, “which basically portrays everything that has to do with the climate as hysteria“, explains Katharina Rogenhofer, Director of the Kontext Institute for Climate Issues, in an interview with Table.Briefings. The FPÖ isagainst the Green Deal, against CO2 taxes and against the EU renaturation law.
The conservative ÖVP, which is just behind the FPÖ in the polls with 24 percent, also positions itself against renaturation and binding soil protection targets in its election manifesto. It is the “first election campaign in a long time” in which the climate issue is not playing a major role, says Rogenhofer. Now it will “definitely become an issue”. Politicians from the Greens and the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) in particular are referring to the connection with climate change. However, it is still completely unclear “which party this extreme weather will help and in which direction it will be used”.
Little interest in climate in eastern Germany
Saxony and Brandenburg are also looking with concern at the wave of flooding that is rolling towards them from the south-east. However, the central cause of the flood disaster, climate change, has hardly played a role in the state elections in these states and in Thuringia. According to infratest/dimap, in the upcoming election in Brandenburg next Sunday,the environment/climate was only the top issue for seven percent of respondents, while 40 percent see immigration as the biggest problem, followed by education and transport.
In Saxony and Thuringia, the Greens, which is practically the only party pushing for the implementation of climate action, was voted out of government and even out of the state parliament. In Brandenburg, the party must fear for its entry into the state parliament. In all three states, the Greens were responsible for climate policy as part of the state governments in the last legislative period and initiated plans, laws and measures for climate protection and the expansion of renewables.
Preparing for floods has its limits
The heavy rainfall events in Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Austria had been predicted by meteorologists for days. The authorities had been warned. But “you can’t prepare for certain weather conditions like this, you can only evacuate”, says ZDF meteorologist and climate expert Özden Terli to Table.Briefings. Even in large parts of politics, “the facts of physics are not understood and not accepted – and that the express train to the climate crisis has been rolling for a long time and we have to prepare for it”.
In view of this “loss of control”, Terli calls for a much more intensive public debate on climate action and adaptation measures. During the catastrophe in the Ahr valley three years ago, around 170 liters of rainwater fell per square meter, in Austria it was sometimes twice as much – “the polder areas are not sufficient to absorb this”, says Terli. “Then the river looks for its own polder.” We have to “prepare for disasters, but we must not bury our heads in the sand”, says the meteorologist. Politicians and society need to do more to tackle the causes and avert the damage.
In Germany, where the Ministry of the Environment is currently celebrating “Climate Adaptation Week“, the Minister responsible, Steffi Lemke, is facing accusations from the Federal Audit Office that the federal government is not responsible for her “Natural Climate Protection Action Program” (ANK) and that it lacks targets. Lemke pointed out that heavy rainfall and flooding were “a massive safety risk”, and that nature conservation, such as more space for nature and rivers, was also “practical risk prevention in the face of the climate crisis”. This idea is being implemented with the ANK. The new flood protection law should be passed by the cabinet this year.
Limits of adaptation are reached
The Federal Environment Agency isalso concerned about climate damage: “If extreme events continue to increase in the future as they have in recent years, then the limits of adaptation will be reached at some point”, says expert Achim Daschkeit to Table.Briefings. Only long-term precautions can be effective against such short-term disasters. Overall, the pace of adaptation must increase, for example in urban redevelopment or the renaturation of rivers. “We could make faster progress if the findings of science were taken more seriously“, they say. In an emergency, areas in flood zones would also have to be abandoned – a sensitive political and legal issue. At present, however, new buildings are sometimes even being built in areas that are threatened by flooding.
While parts of Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria have been declared a disaster zone, European car manufacturers are demanding a similar classification for their industry: Because they have not reduced the CO2 emissions of their cars enough in the past and too few EVs have been sold, manufacturers are facing fines in the billions from 2025 under an EU directive. To prevent this, according to the industry association ACEA, the EU Commission should officially declare a “state of emergency” and temporarily suspend the necessary rules for them.
Climate adaptation
Flood
Flooding
Renaturierung
Translation missing.
Natural climate action: Court of Auditors criticizes inefficiency and lack of responsibility
The BMUV considers the renaturation of moors to be essential in order to achieve the climate targets; the Federal Audit Office doubts the efficiency.
The Federal Audit Office (BRH) criticizes one of the central projects of the traffic light government in the environmental and climate sector because the federal government is not responsible for it and thus partially disregards “budgetary principles”. In the case of funding guidelines for the “Natural Climate Protection Action Program“, with which a total of €3.5 billion is earmarked for nature conservation and climate action over the next few years, an “economical and efficient use of funds is not guaranteed” in some cases, according to the “final reports” on the audit of two funding guidelines. The Court of Audit’s internal documents are available to Table.Briefings.
The Ministry of the Environment (BMUV), which is in charge, refutes the accusations. It refers to a legal opinion and the declared will of the Bundestag for its responsibility. And it stresses that the benefits of the programs for climate action are certainly demonstrable.
Accusations: no competence, no goals, waste of money
In the background of the debate about the audits, which have been running for a year, there is growing concern that the BRH criticism could lead to the program being cut further in the upcoming final budget negotiations.
The ANK was adopted in 2023. It is intended to finance programs – such as forest and moorland protection – that jointly promote biodiversity and climate action. The aim is to protect and promote moors, forests and floodplains in order to improve CO2 absorption, climate adaptation and biodiversity. The Federal Audit Office had already audited the draft of the ANK funding guidelines in 2023. In its final assessment of the regulations on municipal climate action in rural areas and in municipalities in general, the auditors from Bonn criticized the following in particular:
Nature conservation is the responsibility of the federal states, not the federal government.
The guidelines lacked the targets for “safeguarding the substantial federal interest” and for achieving the climate protection targets by the ANK.
Without specific targets and indicators, an “economical and efficient use of funds is not guaranteed” in some areas.
In some cases, there are “extraneous considerations” when it comes to grants, and in some cases the impression is created that the aim is to “maximize the outflow of funds from the KTF [Climate and Transformation Fund]”.
When using the state development bank KfW to implement projects, the BRH has doubts about “targeted coordination in terms of nature conservation“.
In part, the BMUV is disregarding the legal requirements of the KTF through the planned allocation of funds.
Central project for climate and species protection
The criticism from the authority hits one of the most important projects of the traffic light government in the area of climate action, which, with its €3.5 billion, places a clear focus on combining climate action and nature conservation. It is the largest program in this area ever launched in Germany. Of the original €4 billion, around €3.5 billion remained after a round of savings. Following criticism that hardly any funds flowed out of the program last year, the guidelines and structures that make this disbursement possible have now been established, according to information from the BMUV. According to the BMUV, they are to be distributed as follows:
€320 million in 2024, primarily for the promotion of forest areas and soils as CO2 reservoirs;
€579 million in 2025 to finance the projects already underway and protect peatland;
2026 to 2028 will see “increasing financial resources” to pursue moorland protection with farmers, such as compensation for land set aside;
€400 million for the promotion of forest and agroforestry systems, a program of the Ministry of Agriculture;
€125 million for forest management that adapts to climate change, and
€100 million for new agricultural machinery that protects the soil.
BMUV: Responsibility by ‘nature of the matter’
The Ministry rejects the Court of Auditors’ accusations. The federal government is obliged to protect the climate by international and European treaties and natural climate action is central to this, for example by preserving and promoting CO2 reservoirs in forests and peatlands. In a legal opinion for the BMUV, which is available to Table.Briefings, the ministry argues that the federal government therefore also has the authority to promote nature conservation due to the “nature of the matter“. The program also implements the obligations arising from the German Climate Protection Act.
In response to the BRH’s question as to how the efficiency of the tax funds used for climate action is measured, the BMUV has reviseditsguidelines. It is clear, it says, that it is not possible to “determine CO2 savings in tons” for all ANK measures such as the preservation of a floodplain meadow or new hedges. However, the improvement in the ecological quality of a biotope, for example, can certainly be measured using indicators. Such a metric has also been developed by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) to regulate the efficient use of federal funds. The BMUV also rejects criticism of the work of the state development bank KfW. The bank handles state contracts in the same way as other project sponsors and must also be accountable according to these criteria.
Arguments for the next round of savings?
The Court of Audit’s criticism has no direct legal consequences. As with many other audits, the Bonn officials present their views internally, but politicians are not bound by their proposals. In the case of the ANK dispute, the BMUV points to backing from the government and parliament: The government has approved and confirmed the ANK. And the budget committee of the Bundestag has supported the ANK with a “resolution on measures” and explicitly requestedthe BMUV to set up the “Rural Municipalities Support Program”.
However, environmental and climate protection activists are concerned that the criticism of the Court of Auditors could be used politically to further cut the funding of the ANK. The traffic light coalition is still looking for several billion euros to close the funding gap in the 2025 federal budget. Although the ANK is not to be affected by this, in the event of an emergency budget imbalance, the large ANK pot could, in case of doubt, arouse covetousness. And then, it is feared, arguments for a cut could possibly also be found in the criticism of the Court of Audit.
Renaturierung
Translation missing.
Wind power: How the UK could help floating turbines achieve a breakthrough
The UK has approved its first major project for floating offshore wind turbines. Pictured: A pilot project off the coast of France.
The dream of generating even larger and cheaper amounts of green energy by harnessing higher wind speeds further out at sea has recently received a major boost. The UK government announced a 15-year contract for a projectcalled Green Volt in its latest renewable energy auction in early September. This is the world’s first large-scale commercial floating wind farm. The new €2.9 billion project, which will be built at a depth of 100 to 150 meters 80 kilometers off northeast Scotland, is expected to be completed by 2029. With up to 35 floating turbines, it will generate an output of 400 megawatts (MW).
“This is definitely an important milestone”, said Erik Dugstad from Norwegian wind power company Vårgrønn, which is developing the farm together with Edinburgh-based Flotation Energy. Industry experts believe that the Green Volt project can pave the way for the commercialization of ever-larger floating wind farms in the UK, Europe and around the world.
IRENA: Global potential of 13 terawatts
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimates that a number of floating wind power projects with a total capacity of 244 gigawatts (GW) are currently awaiting approval worldwide. The potential of floating wind energy is conservatively estimated at 13 terawatts (TW) in deep waters worldwide, according to the agency.
Flotation Energy’s technology has already been successfullytested in recent years with a 50 MW project off Kincardine, Scotland. Unlike conventional offshore wind turbines, which require foundations to be sunk into the seabed, floating wind turbines can be anchored to the sea surface or below the waterline using cables. This allows developers to cost-effectively exploit ever deeper areas further offshore with higher and more predictable wind speeds.
Green Volt will be built close to an existing but declining oil and gas operation so that it can be connected to an existing interconnector back to shore and into the grid. The Crown Estate, an independent government agency that leases the seabed for wind energy in the UK, has announced plans for even more floating wind turbines. When the Crown Estate completes its next bidding round in early 2025, floating wind turbines will also be built in the relatively undeveloped Celtic Sea off southwest England and Wales.
The challenge of grid connection
Floating wind turbines have so far only beenrealized in smaller projects:
Norway currently has three smaller projects with a total of 94 MW,
The UK is in second place with 80 MW from two projects,
Portugal is in third place with a 25 MW project,
China ranks fourth with 23 MW from three projects,
Japan in fifth place with five MW from two projects
and Spain and France in sixth place with two MW each.
Jane Cooper, Executive Director of Offshore Wind at industry association RenewableUK, explained that floating wind farms still face challenges. In Europe, for example, renewable energy developers face delays of up to ten years or more in connecting to the grid. “As with any new type of technical infrastructure, there are challenges to overcome. If we can solve these, floating wind could account for well over half of the UK’s offshore wind generation by 2050. Some of this energy can be used to produce green hydrogen, increasing the flexibility of the energy supply”, says Cooper.
Energiewende
Energy transition
Great Britain
Technologie
Wind power
News
Fraud in China: Federal Environment Agency wants to cancel 45 projects
In connection with suspected cases of fraud in China, the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) wants to stop 45 climate projects. “Our goal is to reverse all 45 suspicious China projects”, explained UBA President Dirk Messner at a digital press conference on Monday. The projects were under “very strong suspicion of fraud”. It is probably a “deceptive contract system” in which projects are registered that do not meet the stated requirements, such as the reduction of greenhouse gases, he explained.
The 45 projects include climate certificates worth six million tons of CO2 equivalents. According to the UBA, this would correspond to a market value of €1.5 billion. However, only four of these six million tons could be reversed and saved. As a result, the fraud so far – in terms of the certificates issued – would have caused material damage of around €500 million. The UBA has now thoroughly investigated 56 climate projects in China and can present this interim balance, Messner continued. The investigations, in which both the public prosecutor’s office in Berlin and an international law firm are involved, will continue.
Union criticizes reappraisal
The background to the investigations, which have been ongoing for weeks, is a suspected web of fraud in connection with climate projects in China. As became known in June, German oil companies may have had a contribution credited to their carbon footprints that was attributable to climate protection projects which, according to the UBA, may have been the result of fraud.
The CDU/CSU, among others, is criticizing the investigation into the alleged fraud at the Federal Environment Agency. It accuses the UBA and the Environment Ministry of Steffi Lemke (Greens) of reacting too late to the fraud. According to the UBA, there were initial indications of individual cases in September 2023, which the authority investigated. At first, it was a case of testimony against testimony, and the anonymous whistleblowers were not trustworthy from the outset. The UBA did not initially provide more specific data on suspected companies and individuals, referring to the ongoing investigations. dpa
Federal government must do more for forest and moorland protection immediately
The German government must quickly do more for the climate, especially by better protecting moors, forests and other landscapes. This is the result of a ruling by the Berlin-Brandenburg Higher Administrative Court (OVG) in May, which has been legally binding since last Friday because the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUV), which was in charge of the case, did not appeal. The plaintiff, Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), is now demanding a government draft for “concrete and sufficient measures by Oct. 31”. If this is not forthcoming, it will initiate enforcement proceedings.
However, the Federal Administrative Court will have to decide on a second lawsuit on climate action in other sectors, in which the court also ruled in favor of the DUH in May. The Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK) had lodged an appeal against this.
The ruling, which is now legally binding, concerns climate action in the land use sector. The German government is legally obliged to save a total of 40 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents by 2045. In the opinion of the OVG, it is doing too little to achieve this. In order to implement the ruling, the BMUV has stated that it intends to use a readjustment mechanism in the Natural Climate Protection Action Program (ANK). In concrete terms, this means a regular review, a BMUV spokesperson wrote in response to a request from Table.Briefings. If it then becomes apparent “that we are not achieving the climate targets, we will develop proposals on how to bring the ANK back on track. We have deliberately defined this in the ANK itself.” According to the ministry, a total of €3.5 billion is currently available for the ANK until 2028.
Renewed constitutional complaint against the traffic light coalition’s climate policy
In addition, on Monday the environmental associations Greenpeace and Germanwatch, together with more than 54,000 citizens, filed a new constitutional complaint against what they see as the German government’s inadequate climate policy. The complaint is essentially about the controversial reform of the Climate Protection Act. The associations are also calling for further steps to reduce CO2 emissions in the transport sector.
This means that three complaints against the new Climate Protection Act are nowpending before the Federal Constitutional Court. Last Thursday, BUND and Solarenergie Förderverein Deutschland filed a constitutional complaint against the law. DUH had already lodged its complaint in July. The associations argue that the inadequate climate protection violates fundamental rights. They also refer to a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court from 2021, which essentially states that politicians must do significantly more to achieve climate targets and that they must not postpone drastic steps to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions at the expense of the younger generation. dpa/ae
Wald
Agora: Green investments help economic growth
The investments required to achieve the proposed EU climate target for 2040 of a 90 percent CO2 reduction would help the EU economy to grow by around 2 percent. This is the result of a study by the Agora Energiewende think tank. Investments in cleantech, net-zero infrastructure and building renovation would strengthen production in the EU, create new jobs and promote economic convergence between Western and Eastern Europe, writes Agora.
Smaller EU countries in particular could therefore benefit. While only lower economic growth is forecast for Germany, France, Italy and Spain as a result of investments in climate neutrality, Poland’s gross domestic product (GDP) could increaseby around five percent by 2040 compared to the baseline level.
Half a trillion euros required per year
The EU’s 2040 climate target of a 90 percent CO2 reduction has not yet been decided. The EU Commission presented its plans in February and is currently working on a corresponding legislative package. Member states are expected to define their position at the end of this year or early next year in accordance with international obligations. A lower CO2 reduction target is not ruled out.
If the Commission’s 90 percent target is confirmed, Agora Energiewende assumes that investments of at least €462 billion (2.7 percent of EU GDP) will be required in the 2020s. In the 2030s, the investment requirement would rise to 3.3 percent of GDP or €564 billion. luk
Climate & Environment
EU climate policy
EU climate target 2040
EU-Klimaziel 2040
European policy
Klimapolitik
COP29: How Azerbaijan exerts pressure on the Council of Europe with entry bans
Azerbaijan, the host of the 29th World Climate Conference (COP29) taking place in November, has imposed entry bans on 76 members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (Pace), including four members of the Bundestag: Frank Schwabe and Heike Engelhardt from the SPD, Max Lucks from the Greens and Andrej Hunko from the BSW.
In January, MEPs voted in favor of a resolution accusing Azerbaijan of human rights violations, with the result that the mandate of the Azerbaijani delegation to Pace was not renewed. “Very serious concerns remain about Azerbaijan’s ability to hold free and fair elections, the separation of powers, the weakness of the legislative branch vis-à-vis the executive branch, the independence of the judiciary and respect for human rights“, the resolution from earlier this year reads.
Azerbaijan’s military operation in September 2023, which led to the flight of almost all of the 120,000 Armenian inhabitants of Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia, and the associated blockade of the Lachin Corridor also played a role.
According to Ayhan Hajizade, press spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, the entry ban should remain in place until the mandate is restored, reported the Azerbaijani platform “News“. Even before the entry bans, there was criticism of the fact that this year’s COP is being held in Azerbaijan. The host country was said to be leading the way with poor climate policy. In addition, Baku was said to be “systematically locking up activists and journalists” in the run-up to the conference. asc
COP29
Why CCS is an ‘aberration’ for the German economy
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) will nothelp the German economy on its path to climate neutrality. This is the conclusion of a report by the research firm Energycomment, which was commissioned by Greenpeace. All CO2 landfills to date have been characterized by delays, unexpected project cancellations and geological uncertainties. “The German government’s CCS plans are a far-fetched dream: untested, prone to failure, expensive – and therefore unrealistic”, says Anike Peters, energy expert at Greenpeace.
According to the report, it would take 3,300 times the capacity of the largest European CCS project to date, Sleipner (Norway), to store just ten percent of current fossil emissions underground. In addition, the costs of CCS would remain high in the long term. The report also identifies numerous environmental risks: These include the use of hazardous chemicals, possible leaks in CO2 pipelines, damage to the sea and a decline in biodiversity. CO2 storage could also increase the risk of earthquakes.
CCS could extend the ‘fossil path’
The German government’s carbon management strategyis currently being coordinated by the ministries and includes plans for large-scale industrial plants to capture CO2. In Greenpeace’s view, the focus on CCS could ensure that not enough effort is put into reducing emissions. The use of CCS will “extend the fossil fuel path far into the future”.
Other analyses also repeatedly come to the conclusion that CCS is expensive and immature and that expansion is only progressing slowly. Nevertheless, most experts consider CCS and CCUS technologies to be an important building block on the road to climate neutrality, although the technologies cannot replace rapid emission reductions. kul
CO2-Speicher
Energy transition: Saxon companies put pressure on state government
More than 60 Saxon companies, municipal utilities and chambers of industry and commerce (IHK) are calling on the future government in Dresden to step up the pace of the energy transition. In an appeal presented to Table.Briefings, they call for “a sufficient market supply of electricity from renewable energies such as wind, photovoltaics and biomass at internationally competitive prices as well as the corresponding infrastructure”. In a state comparison, Saxony ranks at the bottom in terms of the expansion of renewables and is in the process of losing its advantages as an attractive economic and industrial location.
The signatories of the appeal include Wacker Chemie, Siemens, Arevipharma, Stadtwerke Zittau and the Dresden and Chemnitz Chambers of Industry and Commerce. Because social acceptance is a basic prerequisite for the success of the energy transition, the signatories are calling on the state government to “actively and positively communicate the necessity of the expansion as well as targeted information campaigns and advisory services”.
The future state government should “commit to a pragmatic and rapid expansion of renewable energies in Saxony”. It is “important that it emphasizes their relevance for local value creation and securing the location and makes the development opportunities for Saxony clear”. Last but not least, grid capacities are a problem. The state government should work to accelerate the expansion of the grid. This means: “Streamlining, flexibilization and digitalization of approval procedures, especially in grid bottleneck regions.” hk
Energiewende
Advertising: Why The Hague is the first city to ban fossil fuel advertising
Last Thursday, The Hague became the first city in the world to pass a law banning advertising for fossil fuel products and climate-damaging services. According to the British newspaper Guardian, both public and private advertising for cruise ships, airplanes, petrol and diesel will be banned on streets and at bus stops from the beginning of next year.
The law follows an appeal by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who called earlier this year for governments and the media to enact such advertising bans – similar to what they have done with tobacco. There are also similar developments in other cities: Edinburgh City Council decided in May to ban advertising for fossil fuel companies and weapons on council-owned billboards. Companies that sell these products can also no longer sponsor events or other partnerships in the Scottish capital. kul
Advertising
Fossil fuels
Fossile Brennstoffe
Netherlands
Must-Reads
Financial Times: Lula’s balancing act. Brazil’s left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wants his country to become a pioneer in climate action. But he cannot fight poverty in Brazil without the oil industry. Read the article
The Guardian: Labour backs environmental policy. The British government is planning to appoint a special envoy for nature for the first time. Foreign Secretary David Lammy wants to put the UK at the center of global efforts to tackle environmental crises. The ruling Labour Party will also appoint a new climate envoy, after the Tories abolished this post over a year ago. Read the article
Stern: Climate-neutral steel. A conference in Duisburg is to discuss the way forward for the German steel industry. Green steel is technically possible, but there is a lack of implementation and the costs are not foreseeable. Read the article
Euronews: Hungary to deliver on climate policy. EU finance ministers gathered in Budapest for an informal meeting focusing on several pressing issues, including climate policy, the aging population and the green transition. During the talks, officials emphasized the need for Hungary to improve the consistency and transparency of its climate policy. Hungarian Finance Minister Mihály Varga explained that the country wants to achieve this goal in a way that also contributes to competitiveness. Read the article
Markenartikel Magazin: Companies invest in climate action. Climate action continues to be one of the most important priorities for companies worldwide. 75 percent of them increased their investments in climate action last year. Read the article
The date could not be more appropriate: Until Friday, the Federal Ministry for the Environment is celebrating “Climate Adaptation Week”, which is all about how we deal with the climate crisis. At the same time, neighboring countries to the east are drowning in extreme rain and floods that have so far killed at least 16 people and devastated large swathes of land. And Steffi Lemke’s ministry also has to contend with a harsh ruling from the Federal Court of Auditors, which criticizes one of the central climate action projects of the traffic light government: the “Natural Climate Protection Action Programme”. We take a closer look at these two issues today.
In the future, however, we also want to look more often at where things are not in a mess, but at what constructive approaches there are to the climate crisis. To this end, we are starting today with a loose series on climate solutions. To kick things off, Nick Nuttall explains the potential of floating wind turbines.
We also have updates on the scandal surrounding the climate project fraud scheme in China and explain why Saxon companies call for more speed in the energy transition. Concerning COP29, the omens are not good at the moment – dozens of European parliamentarians have been banned from entering the country. We’ll keep you updated on this too.
Your Lisa Kuner
Feature
Flooding: How adaptation fails when politicians look the other way
The extreme rainfall and flooding in Austria, the Czech Republic and Romania have also left their mark on climate policy. The current disaster shows how quickly even highly developed countries are overwhelmed by the consequences of the crisis. It makes it clear how limited the success of adaptation to climate change has been so far. And it is bringing the crisis back into the public eye – even if the implementation of climate policy is currently faltering in European politics and business and has so far been practically a non-issue in elections.
During the extreme rainfall, many rivers in Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Romania quickly burst their banks. At least 16 people were killed, large areas were flooded and extensive property damage was caused. The cause of the continuing rainfall is the low-pressure area “Boris”, which brought a lot of moisture from the extremely warm Mediterranean to Eastern Europe and was held there by stable highs. According to a brief analysis by the ClimaMeter platform, climate change has played an important role in this development.
Lower Austria is a disaster area
In Austria, at least two people died in floods in their homes and one firefighter was killed in action. Only half of the students in Vienna made it to class on Monday. Subways and long-distance trains were at a standstill. The whole of Lower Austria was declared a disaster area and around ten dams were breached.
In the provincial capital of St. Pölten, for example, it rained more than 350 millimeters per square meter within 96 hours – twice as much as during the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley. For some places, this is already the third so-called “hundred-year flood”, after 2013 and 2002. Such weather conditions are already occurring 13 percent more frequently due to global warming and it is raining 20 percent more, Geosphere Austria announced shortly before the disaster.
The danger increases with climate change. Ignoring this seems to be the best campaign tactic in Austria so far for the national elections on Sept. 29. The current leader of the polls is the right-wing populist FPÖ, “which basically portrays everything that has to do with the climate as hysteria“, explains Katharina Rogenhofer, Director of the Kontext Institute for Climate Issues, in an interview with Table.Briefings. The FPÖ isagainst the Green Deal, against CO2 taxes and against the EU renaturation law.
The conservative ÖVP, which is just behind the FPÖ in the polls with 24 percent, also positions itself against renaturation and binding soil protection targets in its election manifesto. It is the “first election campaign in a long time” in which the climate issue is not playing a major role, says Rogenhofer. Now it will “definitely become an issue”. Politicians from the Greens and the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) in particular are referring to the connection with climate change. However, it is still completely unclear “which party this extreme weather will help and in which direction it will be used”.
Little interest in climate in eastern Germany
Saxony and Brandenburg are also looking with concern at the wave of flooding that is rolling towards them from the south-east. However, the central cause of the flood disaster, climate change, has hardly played a role in the state elections in these states and in Thuringia. According to infratest/dimap, in the upcoming election in Brandenburg next Sunday,the environment/climate was only the top issue for seven percent of respondents, while 40 percent see immigration as the biggest problem, followed by education and transport.
In Saxony and Thuringia, the Greens, which is practically the only party pushing for the implementation of climate action, was voted out of government and even out of the state parliament. In Brandenburg, the party must fear for its entry into the state parliament. In all three states, the Greens were responsible for climate policy as part of the state governments in the last legislative period and initiated plans, laws and measures for climate protection and the expansion of renewables.
Preparing for floods has its limits
The heavy rainfall events in Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Austria had been predicted by meteorologists for days. The authorities had been warned. But “you can’t prepare for certain weather conditions like this, you can only evacuate”, says ZDF meteorologist and climate expert Özden Terli to Table.Briefings. Even in large parts of politics, “the facts of physics are not understood and not accepted – and that the express train to the climate crisis has been rolling for a long time and we have to prepare for it”.
In view of this “loss of control”, Terli calls for a much more intensive public debate on climate action and adaptation measures. During the catastrophe in the Ahr valley three years ago, around 170 liters of rainwater fell per square meter, in Austria it was sometimes twice as much – “the polder areas are not sufficient to absorb this”, says Terli. “Then the river looks for its own polder.” We have to “prepare for disasters, but we must not bury our heads in the sand”, says the meteorologist. Politicians and society need to do more to tackle the causes and avert the damage.
In Germany, where the Ministry of the Environment is currently celebrating “Climate Adaptation Week“, the Minister responsible, Steffi Lemke, is facing accusations from the Federal Audit Office that the federal government is not responsible for her “Natural Climate Protection Action Program” (ANK) and that it lacks targets. Lemke pointed out that heavy rainfall and flooding were “a massive safety risk”, and that nature conservation, such as more space for nature and rivers, was also “practical risk prevention in the face of the climate crisis”. This idea is being implemented with the ANK. The new flood protection law should be passed by the cabinet this year.
Limits of adaptation are reached
The Federal Environment Agency isalso concerned about climate damage: “If extreme events continue to increase in the future as they have in recent years, then the limits of adaptation will be reached at some point”, says expert Achim Daschkeit to Table.Briefings. Only long-term precautions can be effective against such short-term disasters. Overall, the pace of adaptation must increase, for example in urban redevelopment or the renaturation of rivers. “We could make faster progress if the findings of science were taken more seriously“, they say. In an emergency, areas in flood zones would also have to be abandoned – a sensitive political and legal issue. At present, however, new buildings are sometimes even being built in areas that are threatened by flooding.
While parts of Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria have been declared a disaster zone, European car manufacturers are demanding a similar classification for their industry: Because they have not reduced the CO2 emissions of their cars enough in the past and too few EVs have been sold, manufacturers are facing fines in the billions from 2025 under an EU directive. To prevent this, according to the industry association ACEA, the EU Commission should officially declare a “state of emergency” and temporarily suspend the necessary rules for them.
Climate adaptation
Flood
Flooding
Renaturierung
Translation missing.
Natural climate action: Court of Auditors criticizes inefficiency and lack of responsibility
The BMUV considers the renaturation of moors to be essential in order to achieve the climate targets; the Federal Audit Office doubts the efficiency.
The Federal Audit Office (BRH) criticizes one of the central projects of the traffic light government in the environmental and climate sector because the federal government is not responsible for it and thus partially disregards “budgetary principles”. In the case of funding guidelines for the “Natural Climate Protection Action Program“, with which a total of €3.5 billion is earmarked for nature conservation and climate action over the next few years, an “economical and efficient use of funds is not guaranteed” in some cases, according to the “final reports” on the audit of two funding guidelines. The Court of Audit’s internal documents are available to Table.Briefings.
The Ministry of the Environment (BMUV), which is in charge, refutes the accusations. It refers to a legal opinion and the declared will of the Bundestag for its responsibility. And it stresses that the benefits of the programs for climate action are certainly demonstrable.
Accusations: no competence, no goals, waste of money
In the background of the debate about the audits, which have been running for a year, there is growing concern that the BRH criticism could lead to the program being cut further in the upcoming final budget negotiations.
The ANK was adopted in 2023. It is intended to finance programs – such as forest and moorland protection – that jointly promote biodiversity and climate action. The aim is to protect and promote moors, forests and floodplains in order to improve CO2 absorption, climate adaptation and biodiversity. The Federal Audit Office had already audited the draft of the ANK funding guidelines in 2023. In its final assessment of the regulations on municipal climate action in rural areas and in municipalities in general, the auditors from Bonn criticized the following in particular:
Nature conservation is the responsibility of the federal states, not the federal government.
The guidelines lacked the targets for “safeguarding the substantial federal interest” and for achieving the climate protection targets by the ANK.
Without specific targets and indicators, an “economical and efficient use of funds is not guaranteed” in some areas.
In some cases, there are “extraneous considerations” when it comes to grants, and in some cases the impression is created that the aim is to “maximize the outflow of funds from the KTF [Climate and Transformation Fund]”.
When using the state development bank KfW to implement projects, the BRH has doubts about “targeted coordination in terms of nature conservation“.
In part, the BMUV is disregarding the legal requirements of the KTF through the planned allocation of funds.
Central project for climate and species protection
The criticism from the authority hits one of the most important projects of the traffic light government in the area of climate action, which, with its €3.5 billion, places a clear focus on combining climate action and nature conservation. It is the largest program in this area ever launched in Germany. Of the original €4 billion, around €3.5 billion remained after a round of savings. Following criticism that hardly any funds flowed out of the program last year, the guidelines and structures that make this disbursement possible have now been established, according to information from the BMUV. According to the BMUV, they are to be distributed as follows:
€320 million in 2024, primarily for the promotion of forest areas and soils as CO2 reservoirs;
€579 million in 2025 to finance the projects already underway and protect peatland;
2026 to 2028 will see “increasing financial resources” to pursue moorland protection with farmers, such as compensation for land set aside;
€400 million for the promotion of forest and agroforestry systems, a program of the Ministry of Agriculture;
€125 million for forest management that adapts to climate change, and
€100 million for new agricultural machinery that protects the soil.
BMUV: Responsibility by ‘nature of the matter’
The Ministry rejects the Court of Auditors’ accusations. The federal government is obliged to protect the climate by international and European treaties and natural climate action is central to this, for example by preserving and promoting CO2 reservoirs in forests and peatlands. In a legal opinion for the BMUV, which is available to Table.Briefings, the ministry argues that the federal government therefore also has the authority to promote nature conservation due to the “nature of the matter“. The program also implements the obligations arising from the German Climate Protection Act.
In response to the BRH’s question as to how the efficiency of the tax funds used for climate action is measured, the BMUV has reviseditsguidelines. It is clear, it says, that it is not possible to “determine CO2 savings in tons” for all ANK measures such as the preservation of a floodplain meadow or new hedges. However, the improvement in the ecological quality of a biotope, for example, can certainly be measured using indicators. Such a metric has also been developed by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) to regulate the efficient use of federal funds. The BMUV also rejects criticism of the work of the state development bank KfW. The bank handles state contracts in the same way as other project sponsors and must also be accountable according to these criteria.
Arguments for the next round of savings?
The Court of Audit’s criticism has no direct legal consequences. As with many other audits, the Bonn officials present their views internally, but politicians are not bound by their proposals. In the case of the ANK dispute, the BMUV points to backing from the government and parliament: The government has approved and confirmed the ANK. And the budget committee of the Bundestag has supported the ANK with a “resolution on measures” and explicitly requestedthe BMUV to set up the “Rural Municipalities Support Program”.
However, environmental and climate protection activists are concerned that the criticism of the Court of Auditors could be used politically to further cut the funding of the ANK. The traffic light coalition is still looking for several billion euros to close the funding gap in the 2025 federal budget. Although the ANK is not to be affected by this, in the event of an emergency budget imbalance, the large ANK pot could, in case of doubt, arouse covetousness. And then, it is feared, arguments for a cut could possibly also be found in the criticism of the Court of Audit.
Renaturierung
Translation missing.
Wind power: How the UK could help floating turbines achieve a breakthrough
The UK has approved its first major project for floating offshore wind turbines. Pictured: A pilot project off the coast of France.
The dream of generating even larger and cheaper amounts of green energy by harnessing higher wind speeds further out at sea has recently received a major boost. The UK government announced a 15-year contract for a projectcalled Green Volt in its latest renewable energy auction in early September. This is the world’s first large-scale commercial floating wind farm. The new €2.9 billion project, which will be built at a depth of 100 to 150 meters 80 kilometers off northeast Scotland, is expected to be completed by 2029. With up to 35 floating turbines, it will generate an output of 400 megawatts (MW).
“This is definitely an important milestone”, said Erik Dugstad from Norwegian wind power company Vårgrønn, which is developing the farm together with Edinburgh-based Flotation Energy. Industry experts believe that the Green Volt project can pave the way for the commercialization of ever-larger floating wind farms in the UK, Europe and around the world.
IRENA: Global potential of 13 terawatts
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimates that a number of floating wind power projects with a total capacity of 244 gigawatts (GW) are currently awaiting approval worldwide. The potential of floating wind energy is conservatively estimated at 13 terawatts (TW) in deep waters worldwide, according to the agency.
Flotation Energy’s technology has already been successfullytested in recent years with a 50 MW project off Kincardine, Scotland. Unlike conventional offshore wind turbines, which require foundations to be sunk into the seabed, floating wind turbines can be anchored to the sea surface or below the waterline using cables. This allows developers to cost-effectively exploit ever deeper areas further offshore with higher and more predictable wind speeds.
Green Volt will be built close to an existing but declining oil and gas operation so that it can be connected to an existing interconnector back to shore and into the grid. The Crown Estate, an independent government agency that leases the seabed for wind energy in the UK, has announced plans for even more floating wind turbines. When the Crown Estate completes its next bidding round in early 2025, floating wind turbines will also be built in the relatively undeveloped Celtic Sea off southwest England and Wales.
The challenge of grid connection
Floating wind turbines have so far only beenrealized in smaller projects:
Norway currently has three smaller projects with a total of 94 MW,
The UK is in second place with 80 MW from two projects,
Portugal is in third place with a 25 MW project,
China ranks fourth with 23 MW from three projects,
Japan in fifth place with five MW from two projects
and Spain and France in sixth place with two MW each.
Jane Cooper, Executive Director of Offshore Wind at industry association RenewableUK, explained that floating wind farms still face challenges. In Europe, for example, renewable energy developers face delays of up to ten years or more in connecting to the grid. “As with any new type of technical infrastructure, there are challenges to overcome. If we can solve these, floating wind could account for well over half of the UK’s offshore wind generation by 2050. Some of this energy can be used to produce green hydrogen, increasing the flexibility of the energy supply”, says Cooper.
Energiewende
Energy transition
Great Britain
Technologie
Wind power
News
Fraud in China: Federal Environment Agency wants to cancel 45 projects
In connection with suspected cases of fraud in China, the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) wants to stop 45 climate projects. “Our goal is to reverse all 45 suspicious China projects”, explained UBA President Dirk Messner at a digital press conference on Monday. The projects were under “very strong suspicion of fraud”. It is probably a “deceptive contract system” in which projects are registered that do not meet the stated requirements, such as the reduction of greenhouse gases, he explained.
The 45 projects include climate certificates worth six million tons of CO2 equivalents. According to the UBA, this would correspond to a market value of €1.5 billion. However, only four of these six million tons could be reversed and saved. As a result, the fraud so far – in terms of the certificates issued – would have caused material damage of around €500 million. The UBA has now thoroughly investigated 56 climate projects in China and can present this interim balance, Messner continued. The investigations, in which both the public prosecutor’s office in Berlin and an international law firm are involved, will continue.
Union criticizes reappraisal
The background to the investigations, which have been ongoing for weeks, is a suspected web of fraud in connection with climate projects in China. As became known in June, German oil companies may have had a contribution credited to their carbon footprints that was attributable to climate protection projects which, according to the UBA, may have been the result of fraud.
The CDU/CSU, among others, is criticizing the investigation into the alleged fraud at the Federal Environment Agency. It accuses the UBA and the Environment Ministry of Steffi Lemke (Greens) of reacting too late to the fraud. According to the UBA, there were initial indications of individual cases in September 2023, which the authority investigated. At first, it was a case of testimony against testimony, and the anonymous whistleblowers were not trustworthy from the outset. The UBA did not initially provide more specific data on suspected companies and individuals, referring to the ongoing investigations. dpa
Federal government must do more for forest and moorland protection immediately
The German government must quickly do more for the climate, especially by better protecting moors, forests and other landscapes. This is the result of a ruling by the Berlin-Brandenburg Higher Administrative Court (OVG) in May, which has been legally binding since last Friday because the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUV), which was in charge of the case, did not appeal. The plaintiff, Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), is now demanding a government draft for “concrete and sufficient measures by Oct. 31”. If this is not forthcoming, it will initiate enforcement proceedings.
However, the Federal Administrative Court will have to decide on a second lawsuit on climate action in other sectors, in which the court also ruled in favor of the DUH in May. The Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK) had lodged an appeal against this.
The ruling, which is now legally binding, concerns climate action in the land use sector. The German government is legally obliged to save a total of 40 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents by 2045. In the opinion of the OVG, it is doing too little to achieve this. In order to implement the ruling, the BMUV has stated that it intends to use a readjustment mechanism in the Natural Climate Protection Action Program (ANK). In concrete terms, this means a regular review, a BMUV spokesperson wrote in response to a request from Table.Briefings. If it then becomes apparent “that we are not achieving the climate targets, we will develop proposals on how to bring the ANK back on track. We have deliberately defined this in the ANK itself.” According to the ministry, a total of €3.5 billion is currently available for the ANK until 2028.
Renewed constitutional complaint against the traffic light coalition’s climate policy
In addition, on Monday the environmental associations Greenpeace and Germanwatch, together with more than 54,000 citizens, filed a new constitutional complaint against what they see as the German government’s inadequate climate policy. The complaint is essentially about the controversial reform of the Climate Protection Act. The associations are also calling for further steps to reduce CO2 emissions in the transport sector.
This means that three complaints against the new Climate Protection Act are nowpending before the Federal Constitutional Court. Last Thursday, BUND and Solarenergie Förderverein Deutschland filed a constitutional complaint against the law. DUH had already lodged its complaint in July. The associations argue that the inadequate climate protection violates fundamental rights. They also refer to a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court from 2021, which essentially states that politicians must do significantly more to achieve climate targets and that they must not postpone drastic steps to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions at the expense of the younger generation. dpa/ae
Wald
Agora: Green investments help economic growth
The investments required to achieve the proposed EU climate target for 2040 of a 90 percent CO2 reduction would help the EU economy to grow by around 2 percent. This is the result of a study by the Agora Energiewende think tank. Investments in cleantech, net-zero infrastructure and building renovation would strengthen production in the EU, create new jobs and promote economic convergence between Western and Eastern Europe, writes Agora.
Smaller EU countries in particular could therefore benefit. While only lower economic growth is forecast for Germany, France, Italy and Spain as a result of investments in climate neutrality, Poland’s gross domestic product (GDP) could increaseby around five percent by 2040 compared to the baseline level.
Half a trillion euros required per year
The EU’s 2040 climate target of a 90 percent CO2 reduction has not yet been decided. The EU Commission presented its plans in February and is currently working on a corresponding legislative package. Member states are expected to define their position at the end of this year or early next year in accordance with international obligations. A lower CO2 reduction target is not ruled out.
If the Commission’s 90 percent target is confirmed, Agora Energiewende assumes that investments of at least €462 billion (2.7 percent of EU GDP) will be required in the 2020s. In the 2030s, the investment requirement would rise to 3.3 percent of GDP or €564 billion. luk
Climate & Environment
EU climate policy
EU climate target 2040
EU-Klimaziel 2040
European policy
Klimapolitik
COP29: How Azerbaijan exerts pressure on the Council of Europe with entry bans
Azerbaijan, the host of the 29th World Climate Conference (COP29) taking place in November, has imposed entry bans on 76 members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (Pace), including four members of the Bundestag: Frank Schwabe and Heike Engelhardt from the SPD, Max Lucks from the Greens and Andrej Hunko from the BSW.
In January, MEPs voted in favor of a resolution accusing Azerbaijan of human rights violations, with the result that the mandate of the Azerbaijani delegation to Pace was not renewed. “Very serious concerns remain about Azerbaijan’s ability to hold free and fair elections, the separation of powers, the weakness of the legislative branch vis-à-vis the executive branch, the independence of the judiciary and respect for human rights“, the resolution from earlier this year reads.
Azerbaijan’s military operation in September 2023, which led to the flight of almost all of the 120,000 Armenian inhabitants of Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia, and the associated blockade of the Lachin Corridor also played a role.
According to Ayhan Hajizade, press spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, the entry ban should remain in place until the mandate is restored, reported the Azerbaijani platform “News“. Even before the entry bans, there was criticism of the fact that this year’s COP is being held in Azerbaijan. The host country was said to be leading the way with poor climate policy. In addition, Baku was said to be “systematically locking up activists and journalists” in the run-up to the conference. asc
COP29
Why CCS is an ‘aberration’ for the German economy
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) will nothelp the German economy on its path to climate neutrality. This is the conclusion of a report by the research firm Energycomment, which was commissioned by Greenpeace. All CO2 landfills to date have been characterized by delays, unexpected project cancellations and geological uncertainties. “The German government’s CCS plans are a far-fetched dream: untested, prone to failure, expensive – and therefore unrealistic”, says Anike Peters, energy expert at Greenpeace.
According to the report, it would take 3,300 times the capacity of the largest European CCS project to date, Sleipner (Norway), to store just ten percent of current fossil emissions underground. In addition, the costs of CCS would remain high in the long term. The report also identifies numerous environmental risks: These include the use of hazardous chemicals, possible leaks in CO2 pipelines, damage to the sea and a decline in biodiversity. CO2 storage could also increase the risk of earthquakes.
CCS could extend the ‘fossil path’
The German government’s carbon management strategyis currently being coordinated by the ministries and includes plans for large-scale industrial plants to capture CO2. In Greenpeace’s view, the focus on CCS could ensure that not enough effort is put into reducing emissions. The use of CCS will “extend the fossil fuel path far into the future”.
Other analyses also repeatedly come to the conclusion that CCS is expensive and immature and that expansion is only progressing slowly. Nevertheless, most experts consider CCS and CCUS technologies to be an important building block on the road to climate neutrality, although the technologies cannot replace rapid emission reductions. kul
CO2-Speicher
Energy transition: Saxon companies put pressure on state government
More than 60 Saxon companies, municipal utilities and chambers of industry and commerce (IHK) are calling on the future government in Dresden to step up the pace of the energy transition. In an appeal presented to Table.Briefings, they call for “a sufficient market supply of electricity from renewable energies such as wind, photovoltaics and biomass at internationally competitive prices as well as the corresponding infrastructure”. In a state comparison, Saxony ranks at the bottom in terms of the expansion of renewables and is in the process of losing its advantages as an attractive economic and industrial location.
The signatories of the appeal include Wacker Chemie, Siemens, Arevipharma, Stadtwerke Zittau and the Dresden and Chemnitz Chambers of Industry and Commerce. Because social acceptance is a basic prerequisite for the success of the energy transition, the signatories are calling on the state government to “actively and positively communicate the necessity of the expansion as well as targeted information campaigns and advisory services”.
The future state government should “commit to a pragmatic and rapid expansion of renewable energies in Saxony”. It is “important that it emphasizes their relevance for local value creation and securing the location and makes the development opportunities for Saxony clear”. Last but not least, grid capacities are a problem. The state government should work to accelerate the expansion of the grid. This means: “Streamlining, flexibilization and digitalization of approval procedures, especially in grid bottleneck regions.” hk
Energiewende
Advertising: Why The Hague is the first city to ban fossil fuel advertising
Last Thursday, The Hague became the first city in the world to pass a law banning advertising for fossil fuel products and climate-damaging services. According to the British newspaper Guardian, both public and private advertising for cruise ships, airplanes, petrol and diesel will be banned on streets and at bus stops from the beginning of next year.
The law follows an appeal by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who called earlier this year for governments and the media to enact such advertising bans – similar to what they have done with tobacco. There are also similar developments in other cities: Edinburgh City Council decided in May to ban advertising for fossil fuel companies and weapons on council-owned billboards. Companies that sell these products can also no longer sponsor events or other partnerships in the Scottish capital. kul
Advertising
Fossil fuels
Fossile Brennstoffe
Netherlands
Must-Reads
Financial Times: Lula’s balancing act. Brazil’s left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wants his country to become a pioneer in climate action. But he cannot fight poverty in Brazil without the oil industry. Read the article
The Guardian: Labour backs environmental policy. The British government is planning to appoint a special envoy for nature for the first time. Foreign Secretary David Lammy wants to put the UK at the center of global efforts to tackle environmental crises. The ruling Labour Party will also appoint a new climate envoy, after the Tories abolished this post over a year ago. Read the article
Stern: Climate-neutral steel. A conference in Duisburg is to discuss the way forward for the German steel industry. Green steel is technically possible, but there is a lack of implementation and the costs are not foreseeable. Read the article
Euronews: Hungary to deliver on climate policy. EU finance ministers gathered in Budapest for an informal meeting focusing on several pressing issues, including climate policy, the aging population and the green transition. During the talks, officials emphasized the need for Hungary to improve the consistency and transparency of its climate policy. Hungarian Finance Minister Mihály Varga explained that the country wants to achieve this goal in a way that also contributes to competitiveness. Read the article
Markenartikel Magazin: Companies invest in climate action. Climate action continues to be one of the most important priorities for companies worldwide. 75 percent of them increased their investments in climate action last year. Read the article
