The German economy minister plans a "historic compromise" on a new climate change charter to help achieve a climate-neutral society by 2050. The new measures will aim to cross parties lines and help businesses.
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German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier announced plans for a new climate charter, containing new proposals for climate protection in Germany .
"It is my opinion that climate protection is the central and most important task our generation has to deal with," he said at a press conference in Berlin.
"We must act accordingly," he added. He also admitted that he had made mistakes in his role in the past.
"We have failed to adequately explain our policy. A lot could have happened quicker and faster," he said.
The charter, which he hopes parliament will approve before next year's autumn elections, will cross party lines. Altmaier, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's center-right Christian Democrats, wants to approach the other parties in the political center of the Bundestag.
What will be in the new charter?
Altmaier enumerated 20 points, including increased state incentives for environmentally friendly businesses and a call for more EU-wide policies.
He announced that every year until 2050 will see new concrete CO2 reduction plans. By that year, Germany plans to be completely carbon-neutral. Earlier this year, the government announced it would introduce a CO2 price of €25 per ton for fuel, gas and oil used for heating.
The key points of the strategy will focus on helping businesses, Altmaier said.
"The more we tackle the achievement of the climate goals, the more we must support the economy, especially small and medium-sized enterprises," Altmaier told Germany's Der Spiegel magazine earlier on Friday.
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How will Altmaier get other parties on board?
Key in the new charter is Altmaier's plan to cross party lines. But smaller parties were quick to point out flaws.
"There are still completely the wrong priorities when it comes to infrastructure building," Stephan Kühn of the Green Party said in parliament.
The climate spokesperson for the pro-business FDP was also skeptical of Altmaier's "historic compromise."
"One suggestion: A little less dramatic language and a little more effective and efficient climate politics — then the FDP would happily work together," Lukas Köhler wrote on Twitter.
Germany is set to have federal elections by the end of October 2021, which could see the political shape of the country change. Germany's extensive use of fossil fuels remains a key issue.
Climate change hits the Bavarian Alps
The mountains are warming twice as fast as the global average. But what impact is this having on senstive Alpine regions in Germany?
A golden cross sits on top of Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze, located in the Ammergauer Alps. This part of the Alps, and the mountain itself, are a big draw for visitors eager to ski, hike, climb or just cruise to the top in a cable car to have some food or a beer. But the mountains are feeling the impact of a warming world — at an alarming rate.
It's September and unusually warm. So warm that some people wear shorts and T-shirts as they stop off to eat and explore the glacier plateau before heading for the summit. Thirty years ago, it would have been much colder here. Since 1985, there's been a warming of around 1 degree Celsius (1.8 Fahrenheit). In the Alps, temperatures are rising twice as fast as the global average.
Image: DW/J. Collins
Melting glaciers
Increased temperatures mean receding glaciers. Michael Krautblatter, pictured at the Schneefernerhaus environmental research station with the remnants of one of the Zugspitze's glaciers behind him, says "it's just a matter of time before they disappear." The professor of landslide research at Munich's Technical University (TUM) has been studying the mountain's ice for 10 years.
Image: DW/J. Collins
The science bit
Krautblatter and his team use specialized equipment to measure the Zugspitze's ice and permafrost — a layer of permanently frozen sediment, rock or soil. They place electrodes inside the rocks to measure electrical conductivity. If it's no longer frozen, conductivity is good. The work sometimes involves the researchers scaling the mountain face. The permafrost is disappearing too, they say.
Image: DW/J. Collins
Losing stability
That's bad news, largely because permafrost helps to stabilize the mountain rock. Over the past year, around a thousand rockfalls have been reported, says Krautblatter. Some popular hiking routes have already been closed and a dozen or so Alpine huts are subsiding. It could also be a problem for cable cars, because they are anchored in the rocks on the mountainside.
Image: DW/J. Collins
A family tradition
Scientists aren't the only ones who've witnessed the changes. Toni Zwinger is 33 years old and works at the inn run by his family near the summit. He grew up on the mountain and as a child the glaciers were his playground. He says the glacier is much smaller, the winters are warmer and he hears the rocks shifting outside in the evening when the tourists have gone and the mountain is quiet.
Image: DW/J. Collins
Münchner Haus
The Münchner Haus opened in 1897 and the Zwinger family has been running it since 1925 — back when it could only be reached by climbers. It's a traditional Alpine hut in which people can stay overnight. Those people can now easily ascend the mountain by train and cable car. That's increased the number of visitors to the peak exponentially.
Image: picture-alliance/akg-images
Uncertain future
Even if, as set out in the Paris Agreement, the world manages to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, that would represent warming of around 4 degrees in the Alps. That means less snow, more rain, changing vegetation and no glaciers. It could also mean that visitors will no longer be able to enjoy a beer or hot chocolate at the century-old Münchner Haus.
