Chancellery chief: Germany can still meet national 2020 goals

The chief of the German chancellery, Peter Altmaier, says Germany can still meet its own national 2020 climate protection goals despite increased emissions in 2016. He told public TV channel ZDF’s show “Berlin direkt” that he would “not give up on the goal” of outperforming common European emissions reduction targets in Germany by 2020. Altmaier said Germany would surely meet common European goals but fulfilling national aims was more difficult because of their greater ambition. Recent emissions increases were linked to Germany’s economic growth, which at the same time had produced “millions of new jobs” and greater export volumes. Germany already “demands a lot from its citizens” in the form of greater power costs to advance renewables expansion. The country has to remain an industrial location despite its commitment to climate protection, Altmaier added.

See the video in German here (availability depending on your location).

For background, see the CLEW article Germany “stands by existing climate targets” and the CLEW dossier The energy transition and climate change.