Air pollution in Germany has significantly decreased over the past decade. Air pollution occurs when harmful substances are released into the Earth's atmosphere. These pollutants are released through human activity and natural sources. Germany took interest in reducing its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by switching to renewable energy sources. Renewable energy use rate from 6.3% in 2000 to 34% in 2016. Through the transition to renewable energy sources, some people believe Germany has become the climate change policy leader and renewable energy leader in the European Union (EU) and in the world with ambitious climate change programs, though Germany's emissions per capita are in fact among the highest in Europe, almost twice those of e.g. France. The current goal of the German government was approved on 14 November 2016 in the German Climate Action Plan 2050, which outlines measures by which Germany can meet its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. By 2050, Germany wants to reduce their GHGs by 80 to 95% and by 2030 they want to reduce it by 55%, compared to the EU target of 40%.
In order to achieve these goals, a variety of strategies and policies are used rather than legislation. The four strategies the German government bases air pollution control on are laying down environmental quality standards, emission reduction requirements according to the best available technology, production regulations, and laying down emission ceilings. Through these strategies, policy instruments have been put in place that have contributed to the success of the significant air pollution reduction in Germany. These instruments include the Federal Emission Control Act and Implementing Ordinances, Technical Instructions on Air Quality Control (TA Luft), Amendment to Ordinance on Small Firing Installations, Implementation of the directive on industrial emissions, and Transboundary air pollution control policy. The German Feed-in-Tariff policy introduced in 2000 led to the significant increase in renewable energy use and decreasing air pollution. They have been introduced in Germany to increase the use of renewables, such as wind power, biomass, hydropower, geothermal power, and photovoltaics, thereby reducing GHG emissions causing air pollution and combating climate change.
The German government has been an agenda setter in international climate policy negotiations since the late 1980s. However, national and global climate policies have become a top priority since the conservative-social democratic government came into power in 2005, pushing both European and international climate negotiations. Positive path dependency in Germany's climate and energy policies has occurred over the past 20 years. There are three main triggers that put Germany on this positive path dependency and what led them to becoming a climate change policy leader. The first being the widespread damages to health, due to smog, and to nature, due to acid rain, caused by air pollution. The second being the shock of the two oil price crises, in 1973 and 1979, that highlighted the problem of the German economy's strong dependence on unsure foreign sources. The third being the growing opposition to the country's growing reliance on nuclear energy. Air pollution began to be seen as a problem in Germany due to these three triggers, causing Germany to put policies into place to control air pollution.Winfried Huck, Jennifer Maaß, Saparaya Sood, Tahar Benmaghnia, Alexander Schulte, Sarah Heß, Marc-Anthony Walter: The Right to Breathe Clean Air and Access to Justice - Legal State of Play in International, European and National Law in 8(22) International Institutions: Transnational Networks, 2021, pp. 18-21, available at SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3808572 This has now developed from controlling air pollution to being a leader in climate change politics.
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Background Air pollution may cause diseases, allergies, or death in humans. It may also cause harm to other living organisms, such as animals and crops, and may cause damage to the environment. Air pollution can be generated by both human activity and natural processes.
An air pollutant is a substance in the air that can have adverse effects on humans and the ecosystem.
The major primary pollutants produced by human activity include: Carbon dioxide (CO2) - The most emitted form of human caused air pollution. Emitted by the burning of fossil fuels. Sulfur oxides (SOx) - Particularly sulfur dioxide. Produced by the combustion of coal and petroleum. NOx (nitrogen oxides, particularly nitrogen dioxide). Produced by high-temperature combustion. Carbon monoxide (CO) - Product of incomplete combustion of fuel such as natural gas, coal or wood. Vehicle exhaust is a major source of carbon monoxide. Volatile organic compounds (VOC) - Categorized as either methane or non-methane. Methane is an extremely efficient greenhouse gas which contributes to enhanced global warming. Ammonia (NH3) - Emitted from agricultural processes. Secondary pollutants include: Particulates created from gaseous primary pollutant and compounds in photochemical smog. Smog is a kind of air pollution and results from large amounts of coal burning in an area caused by a mixture of smoke and sulfur dioxide. Modern smog does not usually come from coal but from vehicular and industrial emissions that are acted on in the atmosphere by ultraviolet light from the sun to form secondary pollutants that also combine with the primary emissions to form photochemical smog. Ground-level ozone (O3) formed from NOx and VOCs. Abnormally high concentrations are brought about by human activities (mostly the combustion of fossil fuel), it is a pollutant, and a constituent of smog.
Sources There are various locations, activities or factors which are responsible for releasing pollutants.
Anthropogenic (man-made) sources These are mostly related to the burning of multiple types of fuel. Stationary sources include smoke stacks of power plants, factories, waste incinerators, furnaces and other types of fuel-burning heating devices. Mobile sources include motor vehicles, marine vessels, and aircraft. Controlled burn practices in agriculture and forest management. Fumes from paint, hair spray, varnish, aerosol sprays, and other solvents. Waste deposition in landfills, which generate methane. Military resources, such as nuclear weapons, toxic gases, germ warfare, and rocketry.
Historical roots of Germany's air pollution policies "Modern" environmental policies first began to be developed in the 1960s, with the United States, Japan, Sweden, and to some extent Great Britain at the forefront in establishing new environmental institutions, procedures, instruments, standards, and technologies. Learning from these countries, Germany quickly caught up, especially in the area of air pollution control policy.Weidner, H. (2002). Environmental policy and politics in Germany. In U. Desai (Ed.), Environmental politics and policy in industrialized countries (pp. 149-201). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. The largest triggers for change were: The widespread damages to health (smog) and nature (acid rain) caused by air pollution. The shock of the two oil price crises (1973 and 1979) that highlighted the problem of the German economy's strong dependence on unsure foreign sources. The growing opposition to the country's growing reliance on nuclear energy. As early as 1977, green groups participated in elections to district parliaments. In the European elections of 1979, several such groups put up candidates with a "green label", attracting almost one million votes. During the rise of the green party, environmental issues triggered major and partly violent conflicts. Since the late 1980s, a more cooperative policy style developed between the various actor groups and institutions. The high integrative capacity of the German political system and the willingness of the "organized" green movement to become more cooperative are important features explaining the mostly cooperative climate policy that followed in the 1980s.
The integration of a green political party in the political-administrative system distinguishes Germany from the United States and Japan. The German election system is one of proportional representation. Once the 5% hurdle is overcome, a party achieves representation in parliament. The German federal government and the electoral system tend to promote cooperation. The system of proportional representation makes it difficult for any single party to gain enough seats in the parliament to form a government by itself. Therefore, coalition governments are a basic German feature. The system encourages negotiation and consensus politics on and between all levels of government because it applies to all federal, state, and local bodies. These very specific political-cultural preconditions have influenced Germany's policy style in the area of climate change.
The German public has been largely supportive of the German government's initiatives. An increased perception of vulnerability to climate change appears to motivate German citizens to be willing to change in the hopes of spurring necessary global efforts. Germany's vulnerability to the physical effects of climate change is much lower than the risk to the United States, Japan, Australia and Spain. However, risk perceptions among the population are high.
There is also the issue of the perceived economic costs of action. In Germany, in contrast with many other countries, climate action is not considered to be an economic burden. The additional financial burden on the average household has been rather small, although it has increased in the form of a growing tax burden.Bundesminister für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit. (2008). Erneuerbare Energien in Zahlen [Renewable energy sources in figures]. Berlin, Germany: Author Although certain measures have clear and distinct costs, there is a growing belief that the broader efforts to move to cleaner technologies have created economic "winners" as well. Green technology and renewable energy sectors have created many new jobs. In addition, the dependency on the world energy market for fossil resources is decreasing, reducing Germany's economic-political vulnerability. Thus, a structural change toward a climate-sensitive energy policy has been adopted with almost no social conflicts. These positive employment and foreign energy policy effects of climate-related policies have played an imported role in the public's climate change discourse.
Germany's climate change policies
Germany is well on the way to meeting the standards of air pollution control set by the EU. For sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds it is sufficient to apply the measures already adopted and implemented in the past. However, additional reductions are needed for nitrogen oxides and ammonia. The necessary reductions in nitrogen oxide emissions will be achieved in the transport sector and in stationary installations. The necessary reductions for ammonia emissions will be achieved in the agriculture sector.
Strategies for controlling air pollution The German government bases air pollution control on four strategies: Laying down environmental quality standards Emission reduction requirements according to the best available technology Production regulations Laying down emission ceilings
Policy instruments for controlling air pollution
1. Federal Emission Control Act and Implementing Ordinances Air quality control in Germany is mainly governed by the Act on the Prevention of Harmful Effects on the Environment caused by Air Pollution, Noise, Vibration and similar Phenomena.
2. Technical instructions on air quality control (TA Luft)