DUH (German Environmental Action, Deutsche Environmental Action) won a lawsuit against the German government at the Higher Administrative Court in the German capital Berlin-Brandenburg on Thursday.
The court's ruling says current federal measures to reduce CO2 emissions in various sectors are insufficient and will fall short of the government's own legally binding targets for the coming years. This supports the lawsuit filed by.
DUH members protested outside the court building, holding banners and photos of government members. DUH said the placards were a selection of quotes from concerned members and members of the public.
“Many people have expressed their support for the lawsuit in advance and called for adequate climate protection measures. We will take into account everything they have to say, both outside and inside the courtroom,” the group said online.
What kind of incident was it?
DUH sued for adequate climate protection programs in the fields of industry, transportation, energy, economy, architecture, and agriculture.
In the second lawsuit, they demanded that the government meet climate targets in the area of land use.
The case is largely based on the German government's CO2 emissions targets due in 2030, which another German court ruled to be legally binding in an earlier case.
The overall goal of the law is to reduce total CO2 emissions by at least 65% by 2030 compared to 1990 standards. This figure for 2023 was 46% lower than in 1990, but some experts doubt whether the remaining increase will be achieved in time or not.
The government is in the process of amending the current law to make this trial invalid. However, the court stated that these efforts are not relevant to this case at this time and that current law remains in effect.
The federal government can appeal to the Federal Administrative Court and postpone the decision.
What does DUH propose to further reduce CO2?
One of its lawyers said DUH believes the government's measures are too vaguely formulated and is demanding amendments.
“We don't just need to talk about climate protection all the time, we need concrete, achievable and quickly implementable measures,” DUH chief Jürgen Loesch told German news agency DPA on Thursday.
As for specific changes, he said his group is recommending a speed limit of 100 kilometers per hour (about 62 miles per hour) everywhere on Germany's Autobahn motorway network. Some places are famous for having no speed limits, but rural and regional areas have lower speed limits. Also urban roads. It also recommends abolishing subsidies for company cars with poor fuel efficiency.
In terms of environmental behavior in the construction sector, Germany wants environmentally friendly renovations of public buildings such as schools, which is likely to indicate issues such as improved insulation.
The federal government's legal representatives argued that the DUH lawsuit risks confusing “political plans” with “concrete plans.”
In November 2023, a German court sided with climate groups and ruled that the federal government had failed to meet climate change targets in the transport and building sectors.
sb/sms (AFP, dpa)
