The party was not able to defend the complete German nuclear phase-out as of December 31, 2022, but it was a success that Olaf Scholz announced a new energy efficiency law in line with their interests.
Associations have been calling for this for a long time, because electricity or fuel that is saved has the greatest climate protection effect.
Maybe not a bad deal at all.
Robert Habeck sent his draft law to the departmental vote months ago - the cabinet colleagues are apparently taking their time with an approval, as the "taz" has learned.
According to the Federal Ministry of Economics, there is still a "need for discussion".
The phase-out of nuclear power plants has, of course, been postponed.
The year is 2023 - and Germany is still not nuclear-free.
Escape to illusory solutions
Did the Greens get ripped off?
Once again?
Or can your ministers simply not get their way, even after loud protests?
In any case, the ecological-political balance of the governing party is turning dangerously negative.
On the plus side, the Greens can, above all, post the considerable acceleration in the expansion of renewable energies.
But you have to calculate: The temporary introduction of new climate-damaging subsidies (tank discount) instead of melting them away, postponing a higher CO₂ price and the rather generous new construction of fossil fuel infrastructure.
Most recently, the party took refuge in symbolic politics.
A few days ago, Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir announced that he wanted to decriminalize "containers" - i.e. the fishing out of food that is still edible from waste bins in supermarkets, for example.
After all, too much food ended up in the garbage in Germany, the minister told the »Rheinische Post« , »we therefore have to look pragmatically at where we can start.«
There's nothing wrong with ending prosecutions for food rescuers, but containerization isn't a popular sport.
Even if everyone who wants to can legally get into the garbage cans in the future, that is still not a real contribution against food waste.
A change in the law at the federal level is not planned anyway, rather the states should be encouraged to change their criminal and fine procedures.
Is that really worth mentioning?
Rather not.
Will 2023 really be the "year of climate protection" as the Greens have promised?
And then there is Lützerath.
The Greens have hardly repeated a figure more frequently in recent weeks than the 280 million tons of carbon dioxide that would now be saved because Climate Minister Robert Habeck and North Rhine-Westphalia State Minister Mona Neubaur made a deal with RWE.
Although this provides for the village of Lützerath to be excavated in order to extract the coal underneath, other villages would be preserved as a result.
Above all, the phase-out of coal is being brought forward from 2038 to 2030, which will prevent significant emissions.
Not only is the pact with the energy company controversial.
The question also arises as to whether the Greens have entered into a lucrative but possibly superfluous deal for RWE for a pretty - symbolic - number of eight years.
There are doubts as to whether emissions will actually be saved if the phase-out date is brought forward but more coal is burned in the meantime than originally planned.
Due to rising costs for CO₂, coal combustion could soon become uneconomical without any political decision to phase it out.
And the Lützerath deal only seals the exit from the energy source in West Germany, not in the East German coal areas.
At the end of December, the Green co-leader Ricarda Lang announced that “2023 must be the year of climate protection” – not much of that can be seen yet.
If this does not change quickly, the emission targets will also be torn down in the years to come.
Symbolic politics will no longer help to cover it up.
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The topics of the week
Hopeful technology CDR: The big gap in CO₂ storage
If carbon dioxide cannot be permanently filtered out of the air, we will hardly be able to meet the climate targets.
But how is that supposed to work?
A report presents a global inventory for the first time.
Greenwashing with forest protection projects: Climate protection certificates of many companies are apparently completely overvalued
Trading in climate protection certificates has become a lucrative business.
Companies like Disney, Shell or Gucci are said to have invested in forest protection projects that were clearly overestimated.
Coalition Zoff on road construction: do new motorways really help against traffic jams?
Transport Minister Volker Wissing wants to have new autobahns built.
The traffic should flow better - that's the logic behind it.
But others counter that whoever sows roads will reap more traffic.
What is true?
Energy transition slowed down: How conspiracy belief influences the rejection of wind turbines
More wind power should advance the energy transition.
But the construction of the plants often generates protests.
Psychologist Kevin Winter says what this has to do with belief in conspiracies and how countermeasures can be taken.
Paramedic on the number of injuries in Lützerath: "We may have misinterpreted the wording"
The demo paramedic Iza Hofmann reported on critically injured protesters in Lützerath.
They never made it to the hospitals.
Here she explains how the statements came about.
Lützerath today and "Brent Spar" in the past: how the mistakes are similar
The protests in Lützerath have astonishing parallels with the Greenpeace fight over the "Brent Spar" oil platform in the summer of 1995. This is not a good sign for the climate movement.
Climate report podcast: RWE and the millions under Lützerath
The climate activists' resistance has been broken: RWE can soon dredge up Lützerath.
Why is the company allowed to do this - and how much is the coal worth under the village?
"I don't rule out flying": How does a trip become truly sustainable?
A climate activist provides the answer . Some
travel through Europe by train, others fly to the eco-hotel in New York.
What do holidays look like that are environmentally friendly – and fun?
Looking for a holiday with Annika Rittmann from Fridays for Future.
Stay Confident.
Yours sincerely, Kurt Stukenberg,
Head of Science Department
