Environmental Minister Announces Research Project to Enhance Heat Protection in Cities
In a bid to improve the living conditions in cities during heatwaves, German Federal Environment Minister Carsten Schneider, of the Social Democratic Party, has announced a research project to investigate the regulatory needs at the national level to enable local authorities to better respond to extreme heat.
Schneider, in an interview with the Rheinische Post, emphasized the importance of green spaces, parks and street trees in making life more bearable during heatwaves, stating, “Untreated areas instead of concrete deserts, shaded public spaces and parks with street trees make life in the heat more tolerable.”
The initiative comes in response to repeated requests from federal states and municipalities for further support from the federal government. The minister’s move is also a response to the alarming number of heat-related deaths in Germany, which, according to the Robert Koch Institute, reached approximately 3,000 in 2024. The institute will also provide a preliminary estimate of heat-related deaths this summer, with the reporting process beginning once a week with a mean temperature above 20 degrees Celsius is recorded.