Instruments and actions of the German Federal States towards climate protection

Willi Herbert and Katrin Blechschmidt, Energiestiftung Schleswig-Holstein

Keywords

Abstract

Studies regarding climate protection are already undertaken for the local and national level. But what activities are currently carried out and what options exist at the administrative level of the German Federal States (Laender) has not yet been examined in detail, although this level is a very important one at the point of intersection between national and local policy.

An in-depth study was undertaken to examine how climate protection policies are established in practice in all 16 German Laender. The evaluation concentrated on the identification of starting-points and processes of climate protection policies as well as current goals and their implementation by the different Laender.

The legal framework of climate protection policies was analysed, and has been the focal point in the sectors energy, transport, agriculture/forestry and waste management.

Together with policy stakeholders of the Laender, their problems arising while integrating the national CO_2 reduction goals into the day-to-day political work were discussed. It was discovered that although the Laender are working well in the field of climate protection, they will not reach the national emission reduction goals.

Necessary activities are not prevented by the legal and constitutional framework but rather by the lack of political and social relevance of climate protection policy. To make it a more important and successful issue, the actors at the level of the Laender must link their climate protection activities with other policy sectors to make them more relevant. As result of our analysis, possible future options for political and administrative measures were developed.