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FromCaroline Schaefer
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The traffic light government’s heating law is controversial. Climate researchers are now demanding a restart and are presenting an alternative.
Munich – From 2024, 65 percent of newly installed heating systems will have to be operated with renewable energies. This is what the traffic light government’s new heating law provides for. Failure to comply could result in severe penalties.
But the planned law is controversial. The innovation recently caused controversy in the Federal Council. The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), on the other hand, has now called for a complete restart. Does this make the heating law obsolete? Read here what the researchers propose instead.
Criticism of heating law and traffic lights: climate researcher proposes restart
“My recommendation to the traffic light would be to take a deep breath, take a step back and start again for the heating transition,” said PIK Director Ottmar Edenhofer New Osnabrück newspaper. His suggestion: it would be wiser to work with emission caps and the CO2 price.
“The traffic light got tangled up in climate protection,” warned the climate economist, with a view to the coalition dispute over the planned law. Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) is currently trying to get the Building Energy Act through the Bundestag. According to FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai, adoption before the summer break is “out of the question,” he said Picture.
New start for Habeck’s heating law? Climate researchers with an alternative
In order to get out of the mess, Edenhofer proposes to focus more on national certificate trading for fuel emissions. His suggestion: raise the gas price gradually. In the so-called Fuel Emissions Trading Act (BEHG), an upper limit for emissions could be set, which would make heating with gas more expensive bit by bit. In order to protect citizens from a price shock, the increase could be capped, according to the climate researcher. “With the BEHG, the government really has all the legal options in its hands.”
Climate researcher Ottmar Edenhofer does not think much of the traffic light heating law. Instead, he suggests working with emission caps and the price of CO2.
© Annette Riedl/dpa
It was always said that it would be difficult to push through higher CO2 prices. “But even detailed regulations such as the Heating Exchange Act annoy people and are difficult to enforce,” said the director of the institute. Edenhofer therefore wants: “Clear communication from the government that explains to people why heating with gas has to become more expensive, what price increases can be expected and who is protected from price increases with which refunds.” Recently, the situation has changed much easier on the energy markets – consumers can also benefit from this. The comparison portal Verivox according to the gas price for new customers is currently around 10 cents per kilowatt hour gross.
Olaf Scholz sees concerns about the heating law largely dispelled
That would at least be accepted by the population. Then there would be no need for heating bans, according to Edenhofer. Rather, people would switch to less CO2-intensive heating systems of their own accord in order to save costs. Climate protection must be explained in a comprehensible manner and be socially acceptable – in other words, low-income people must be reimbursed for the additional costs resulting from CO2 pricing.
The concepts for this are ready. “If they are not used, politicians should not be surprised that their climate protection agenda is not understood and accepted. If you don’t have tailor-made compensation measures ready, you don’t even have to start,” the researcher concluded.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz sees it differently. Most of the concerns that are currently being discussed are “no longer justified with regard to the draft law that currently exists, but relate to a rough draft that was not intended to be published at all,” said the Chancellor in an interview nv. Nobody would be “economically and socially overwhelmed” with the current version. Precautions have been taken for this. It remains to be seen what the law will look like in the end. (kas/dpa)
List of rubrics: © Annette Riedl/dpa