"Climate frustration instead of climate lust": Association of cities warns of failure of the heat transition

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Pensioners in the control of a private gas heating system

Photo: Wolfgang Maria Weber / IMAGO

The German Association of Towns and Municipalities warns of a failure of the energy and heat transition. Politicians must act with less hustle and bustle and more sense of reality, said Chief Executive Gerd Landsberg to the newspapers of the "Funke Mediengruppe."

As an example, Landsberg cites the planned Building Energy Act: "Well-intentioned, but badly done". People are afraid for their real estate, feel harassed and fear that they will not be able to finance the required conversions. "Instead of climate enthusiasm, climate frustration arises – and with it the danger of losing the necessary acceptance of the population."

Greater weighting of municipalities

Landsberg calls for greater weight to be given to the possible services of municipalities with their 180,000 buildings – such as schools, daycare centres, sports halls and town halls – in the heat transition. "More than 165,000 properties are currently still heated with gas or oil," he said. "If you start here, you will achieve a lot for the climate in a short time."

The fact that Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) is now signaling a willingness to compromise on the heating law is a good sign for Landsberg. However, there will be no way around a fundamental revision.

Revision of the heat transition

After a fierce dispute in the traffic light coalition, Habeck had held out the prospect of revising the plans for a switch to heating with renewable energies at some points. For example, he suggested that the start on January 1, 2024, could be equalized by initially only applying to new buildings planned then. A meeting between Habeck and members of the SPD, Greens and FDP parliamentary groups is planned for this Tuesday.

The previous legislative plans aimed to ensure that from next year onwards, every newly installed heating system must be powered by at least 65 percent green energy. Alternatively, it is also possible to switch to climate-neutrally generated heat from a heating network.

RAI/DPA