New climate protection index
Germany is improving, but Scandinavia continues to provide the best climate protection
An activist from the Extinction Rebellion climate movement protests on the sidelines of COP26 in Glasgow
© Andy Buchanan / AFP
No state is yet on the right track to achieving the Paris climate protection goals – but there is progress. The Scandinavians shine in a new climate protection ranking and Germany is slowly crawling up.
In the race for the world’s best climate protection, Germany has shortened the gap to the top group of Scandinavian countries somewhat. In the new Climate Protection Index 2022, Germany is in 13th place – better than it has been in eight years (previous year: 19th place). The ranking was presented on Tuesday by environmental organizations at the world climate conference in Glasgow.
It compares the efforts of the largest emitters to reduce emissions of the greenhouse gas CO2. In addition, it is assessed to what extent the states are on the right path to achieve the climate target agreed in Paris in 2015 – that is, to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees as far as possible compared to the pre-industrial era. The index was submitted by Germanwatch, the NewClimate Institute and the Climate Action Network.
“Trial by fire” for the new federal government
Denmark, Sweden and Norway occupy positions four to six in the index – mainly thanks to great progress in the expansion of renewable energies and good climate policy. Places one to three remain vacant again, “because no country is actually on a 1.5-degree path,” as it was said.
On Germany’s climate policy, co-author Jan Burck from Germanwatch said that politicians have not yet given a sufficient answer to the question of how one actually wants to achieve one’s climate goals. With the climate protection measures that have been decided so far, Germany will “crash” miss its legally prescribed targets for 2030, he said. It is the “acid test” for the new federal government, whether it changes the course with an immediate program.
Thea Uhlich from Germanwatch added that under the new federal government, a 100-day program is needed right from the start of the term of office. “This includes the coal phase-out by 2030, a turbo for the expansion of renewable energies and urgent emission reductions finally also in the transport sector – for example through a changed company car privilege.”
China continues to slide, USA improves
At the end of the table, according to the associations, there are “the biggest brakes”: Australia with the worst possible score of 0.0 – even behind Brazil and Algeria. But five EU countries are also in the lowest category of “very bad” when it comes to climate policy: Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and the Czech Republic.
In the “renewable energies” category, Norway was the only country to score “very good”. In addition to the high proportion of hydropower, the country is also increasingly relying on wind and solar energy and has ambitious expansion goals, the authors praised.
China, which emits by far the most greenhouse gases, slips four places down to 37th place. In the overall ranking, the gigantic empire is classified as “weak”. Beijing’s self-set goals for 2030 are far from a Paris-compatible path. On the other hand, the trend in renewable energies is very good, with the country ranking 23rd, roughly ahead of Germany.
According to the authors, the first year under the new President Joe Biden has had a positive effect on the second largest issuer, the USA. In the previous year, America was at the bottom of the list, but has now climbed six places to 55th place in the overall standings, but remains in the “very weak” category. The improvement was solely due to the significantly better policy assessment and the new climate target for 2030, it said. “It will have to be seen in the coming years whether Biden’s policy is actually bearing fruit when it comes to renewables, energy efficiency and ultimately emissions,” said Niklas Höhne from the NewClimate Institute.