Focus on climate crisis
All articles | More information
Reporting on climate change is one of the major journalistic challenges of our time. The climate crisis is also one of the most important issues of humanity for SPIEGEL. For this reason, we support an international initiative that seeks to take a look this week: "Covering Climate Now" was initiated by the Columbia Journalism Review and the Canadian newspaper "The Nation", with more than 200 media companies around the world, including the Guardian, El País, La Repubblica, The Times of India, Bloomberg or Vanity Fair. SPIEGEL is dedicating the cover story of the current issue to the climate crisis this week and every day pays special attention to mirror.de
When the climate cabinet meets on Friday, an industry will have little to fear - agriculture. Compared to 1990, according to the climate protection plan of the federal government in the distant year 2030, it is expected to cause a good 30 percent less greenhouse gases. How exactly this should happen, however, remains puzzling.
The plan vaguely speaks of reducing over-fertilization. In addition, the German government wants to make strong that the agricultural subsidies are linked to the EU's climate goals. For a government that recently had to admit itself that it misses its climate targets for 2020, that does not sound very credible. The potential for CO2 savings, it says in the plan almost apologetically, are in agriculture "limited".
Martin Rücker from the consumer organization Foodwatch sees things differently: "If you want to protect the climate, you must not stop at the lobby of the farmers' association," he says. The fact that there are still no binding savings targets for the agricultural sector is "a scandal".
The polluter pays principle does not yet apply to agricultural policy
To make the problem tangible, Foodwatch has evaluated several scientific studies that shed light on the environmental costs caused by the industry. The burdens seem enormous: Based on the recommended by the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) CO2 price of 180 € per ton on the EU agriculture causes climate costs of 77 billion euros. However, according to the Foodwatch analysis, these environmental costs have hardly played a role in agricultural policy so far.
According to Rücker, the polluter-pays principle established in environmental policy must also apply to agricultural policy: "Anyone who incurs climate and environmental costs must pay for them and not be rewarded with subsidies from taxpayers' money." What SUVs represent for traffic is the overproduction of meat and mass agricultural commodities at the lowest prices for agriculture.
Also, the costs of the so-called negative external effects of agriculture - such as the impact on groundwater or the complex production of artificial fertilizer - has highlighted the investigation.
German Farmers Association considers study to be "not realistic"
If such effects were priced in, then, according to a study by the University of Augsburg, a price premium of almost 200 percent would be needed on conventionally produced animal products. In the case of vegetable products or organically produced goods, the premium would be significantly smaller.
Almost every study is also about the burden of water. According to a UBA study, groundwater and surface water are now so heavily contaminated by nitrate inputs from fertilizer that drinking water customers may incur up to 45 percent higher prices (for appropriate clarification or new wells).
Udo Hemmerling, Deputy General Secretary of the German Farmers' Association, considers the UBA study "unrealistic". This is more of a "projection of worst-case scenarios". In addition, the new, stricter fertilization of the fertilizer has not yet been taken into account.
The new Fertilizer Ordinance has not convinced so far
Federal Minister of Agriculture Julia Klöckner (CDU) has set up a 10-point plan some time ago, in which the Fertilizer Ordinance is a central component - in addition to strengthening organic farming and reducing emissions in animal husbandry. The reduction targets of the plan, however, remain relatively vague, the pressure on farmers low: "The protection of our groundwater," said the Minister, "all of us."
So far, the new Fertilizer Ordinance has not convinced. In Germany, too much nitrate gets into the groundwater, complains the EU Commission. In 28 percent of groundwater reservoirs, the limit is exceeded. Klöckner and Environment Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) must therefore improve again in Brussels. If they do not succeed in the next few weeks, could be due 857,000 euros per day penalty.