Next government should set the “reference point” of full net carbon neutrality by 2050 – commentary

Germany’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 to 95 percent by 2050 means the remaining 5-20 percent are being “left undiscussed”,  Oliver Geden, head of the EU division at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), writes in a guest commentary in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Geden says the next German government should instead set a “reference point” of full net carbon neutrality. This would not only be in line with Paris Climate Agreement goals, but also shift the national debate in Germany “by getting all stakeholders out of their comfort zone” and forcing everyone to think about how the last emissions could be compensated by mid-century, Geden writes. The debate also needs to include “negative emissions, which so far only exist on paper” he adds.

Find the guest commentary in the newspaper’s e-paper (behind paywall) here.

For background, read the CLEW factsheet Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions and climate targets.