Bayern’s Economics Minister, Hubert Aiwanger (Free Voter), will no longer announce a fixed date by which the Free State of Bavaria must achieve climate neutrality. “We need a realistic economic and climate policy, and we must move away from fixed dates that we can’t ultimately meet” said the Free Voter chief in an interview with the Mediengruppe Bayern (Saturday editions). Both the phase-out of fossil fuels, which is planned for 2035, and the rigid data for climate neutrality, whether for 2040, 2045, or 2050, are not goal-oriented but harmful to the economy and the political climate, Aiwanger explained.
The Vice-Minister President had said on Thursday that the climate protection law has already been “watered down” so that the goal of climate neutrality by 2040 is no longer applicable. According to Article 2, Section 2 of the law, it is still stated that “Bavaria shall be climate-neutral by the year 2040 at the latest.” However, the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation reports that the cabinet had already decided to abandon the climate goal in the fall.
Following a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court, Germany is bound to meet the Paris Climate Agreement. The court does not set a date for achieving CO2 neutrality, but rather a CO2 budget that must not be exceeded. If the greenhouse gas emissions are reduced particularly quickly, the budget can last longer. According to the current scientific calculations of the Environmental Advisory Council, Germany would need to be CO2-neutral by 2040 if the CO2 emissions are reduced linearly.
Aiwanger stated that, of course, they strive to replace fossil energy sources with renewable energy as quickly as possible. “But not so quickly that the economy collapses” he said. The truth is that the energy-intensive industry, transportation, trade, and homes and apartments cannot become climate-neutral in 15 to 20 years because there simply won’t be enough green power. “If our requirements only lead to our industry moving to America, where there are no such requirements, and no longer using natural gas by 2045 or only with many additional and costly restrictions, then that is a state-ordained deindustrialization” he claimed. Aiwanger also lamented that other countries could use nuclear power to achieve climate neutrality more quickly, but this is no longer possible here.