Grüne on climate and energy

The Greens want North Rhine-Westphalia to become climate neutral before 2040 if possible and to get onto the 1.5-degree path of the Paris Agreement. An immediate action program and a new climate protection law with annual targets for every sector are meant to start this.

The Greens want NRW to be climate neutral before 2040. Climate neutral means the state no longer harms the climate. An immediate program should start the work. A new law should set yearly goals for every sector. Experts should check whether the goals are met.

The immediate climate action program is meant to launch the most important measures. The new climate protection law is to contain yearly targets per sector and binding plans for reaching them. A climate expert council is to monitor compliance. The state government is to align the work of all ministries with this task. Low-income households are to receive higher funding rates in state subsidy programs.

The Greens want to give cities and towns more money and staff for climate protection and climate adaptation. The platform treats municipal climate planning as part of basic public services and therefore wants binding standards.

Cities and towns should get more money for climate protection. They should also get more staff for it. The state should set fixed rules for climate plans. Every town should make a local climate plan.

The state is to strengthen municipalities with funding and staff, both for climate protection and for protection against the effects of climate change. The platform counts such planning as part of basic public services. Municipalities are to receive binding standards and support to draw up local action plans for climate neutrality and protection against climate impacts.

The Greens want to introduce a climate proviso for new state laws and funding programs. For every law, the effect on greenhouse gas emissions and its fit with climate targets is to be calculated; state money is not to worsen the climate crisis.

The Greens want to check every new law for its effect on the climate. Experts calculate how much greenhouse gas the law causes. State funding programs get the same check. The state should not pay for things that harm the climate.

So far the requirement in the climate protection law applies only to ordinances and administrative rules; it is to be extended to laws and made more specific. In addition to the greenhouse gas balance, social effects are to be assessed. The platform promises lean procedures that can be put in place quickly. A similar climate check is to apply to state funding programs, including money for climate adaptation.

The Greens want to quickly present a climate adaptation strategy with measurable targets. Cities are to be cooled with more greenery and water surfaces and rebuilt along the "sponge city" model; state funding for this is to grow.

The climate is getting warmer, and heavy rain is more common. The Greens want to prepare NRW for this. Cities should get more trees, plants and water. The ground should soak up more rain. This is called a sponge city. The state should give towns more money for this.

The strategy is to include clear targets and measures against heat, drought, storms and heavy rain. Plans include open water surfaces, greened squares, roofs and facades, fresh-air corridors, and restored rivers and streams. Urban planning is to limit soil sealing, and land important for adaptation is to be better protected from development. State funding for adaptation plans, river restoration and building measures is to be expanded in both urban and rural areas.

The Greens want NRW's electricity supply to be 80 percent renewable by 2030 and fully renewable by 2035. Storage, flexible demand, grid expansion and green hydrogen are meant to secure supply, on which the platform says the industrial base also depends.

By 2035, all electricity in NRW should come from wind and sun. By 2030, it should already be 80 percent. This needs many more wind turbines and solar panels. Power storage and new lines should keep the supply safe.

Wind power and photovoltaics are to grow much faster through an expansion drive; solar panels are to go on every suitable roof. To secure supply, the platform wants incentives for electricity storage, more flexible demand and sector coupling. Grid expansion is to speed up so that wind power from northern Germany reaches NRW. For green hydrogen as long-term storage, the state is to support building the necessary infrastructure.

The Greens want to end lignite mining in NRW by 2030 at the latest and adopt a new Leitentscheidung (state guiding decision on mining) right away. All villages in the Rhenish mining area are to be preserved, and a moratorium is to stop demolitions and tree clearing.

The Greens want to stop using coal by 2030. The state should make a new decision on this right away. All villages near the mines should stay. Nobody should tear down more houses or cut more trees there. Coal workers should get honest plans.

The phase-out is to follow the Paris climate goals and be put on a legally secure footing through a new guiding decision. A moratorium on demolition and clearing is to prevent further destruction. The preserved places are to develop into so-called villages of the future. For coal industry workers, the platform calls for reliable phase-out planning to avoid abrupt cuts. Planning for the reuse of power plant sites is to begin now, preferably for future or transitional technologies.

The Greens want to abolish forced resettlement and expropriation for the mining of coal, sand and gravel. Homes are to stay at least 1,000 meters from the open-pit mine, and people already resettled are to be able to buy back their former properties.

Nobody should have to move because of coal, sand or gravel. Nobody should lose their land for it. The mine should stay 1,000 meters away from homes. People who already had to move should be allowed to buy back their house. Villagers should have a say.

Owners are to be obliged to preserve and maintain buildings and established village structures; vacant houses are to serve the housing market. Resettled people are to receive a right of first refusal and of repurchase. Remaining residents are to have a preferential say in village development, and the state is to provide money for adapting to climate neutrality. In all villages at the edge of the mines, the burdens from ongoing operations are to be kept as low as possible.

The Greens want to speed up structural change in the coal regions and keep the energy company RWE responsible for land restoration and the perpetual follow-up costs of lignite mining. Hambach Forest is to be transferred to public ownership and protected.

The company RWE mines lignite coal in NRW. The Greens want RWE to pay for the damage. RWE should restore the landscape. Unused RWE land should go into a fund. Hambach Forest should belong to the public and be protected.

Old RWE operating sites and mining land that is no longer needed are to go into a land fund and quickly become available for new uses. Plans to fill the remaining pit lakes and supply wetlands with Rhine water are to be reviewed in light of climate change and the earlier phase-out. RWE is to put money into ecological restoration instead of rebuilding highways. Hambach Forest is to become part of an ecosystem network, for which the old A4 highway route is to be preserved. The planned "Manheimer Bucht" sand and gravel excavation is to be independently assessed, and the Manheim church is to remain standing.

The Greens want solar panels to become the norm on buildings, starting with public buildings and new construction and later extending to existing ones. They also want to open up land along highways and rail lines, as well as already sealed surfaces, for solar parks. According to the platform, rooftops in North Rhine-Westphalia could generate about half of today's electricity consumption.

The Greens want many more solar panels. Panels should be normal on public buildings and new houses. Later they should also go on older houses. Solar parks should be built next to highways and rail lines. Parking lots and landfills should be used too.

The platform calls for less red tape, easier rules for listed buildings, and an end to minimum distances to neighboring roofs for non-flammable systems. Tenant electricity projects in apartment buildings would get special support, and leasing models and energy cooperatives are meant to help where owners cannot invest themselves. For solar parks, the platform names parking lots, slag heaps and landfills alongside transport corridors, to avoid competing with farming and nature conservation. The first agri-photovoltaic projects, which combine power generation and farming on the same land, would be studied scientifically. A solar decree would give municipalities guidance, including rules to benefit species protection, and residents and host municipalities would be involved early.

The Greens want to make at least 200 new wind turbines possible each year and reserve 2 percent of the state's land for wind power. Fixed minimum distances from homes would be abolished again for that purpose. The platform regards wind, together with photovoltaics, as the foundation of the energy transition and climate protection.

The Greens want more wind turbines in the state. At least 200 new ones should be possible each year. 2 percent of the state's land should be set aside for this. Fixed distances from homes should go away. Birds and bats should still be protected.

Wind turbines would be easier to build in forests that are not especially worthy of protection, in industrial and commercial zones, and along highways. Planning and permitting would be sped up through uniform standards and clear deadlines. Areas with high concentrations of wind-sensitive species would be kept free, while turbines elsewhere would be approved more easily; a protection program for birds and bats is added. Replacing old turbines with more powerful ones would be made easier where species protection does not stand in the way. At the federal level, the party wants to change levies and surcharges so that storing surplus electricity pays off.

The Greens want to back citizen-owned energy projects with a new fund for project development. The state's funding program for tenant electricity would be relaunched. The platform says this would let as many people as possible benefit from cheap energy.

Citizens should be able to run wind and solar parks themselves. The Greens want a new fund for this. Renters should also get power from their own roof. The state should support such projects again.

Support would go, for example, to public-interest energy cooperatives planning wind and solar parks. The platform speaks of democratizing the energy supply. In federal politics, the party wants to push for more attractive conditions for tenant electricity. It justifies this with the large number of apartment buildings in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The Greens want to renovate three times as many buildings per year for energy efficiency as today and require a minimum share of renewable energy when heating systems are replaced, including in existing buildings. All state-owned buildings would be renovated by 2030. In the platform's view, the current pace is not enough to heat buildings climate-neutrally within 20 years.

The Greens want to insulate and modernize many more buildings. This should go three times as fast as today. New heating systems should run partly on renewable energy. That applies to older houses too. The state should renovate its own buildings by 2030.

State buildings would be renovated by 2030 under a plan and fitted with solar panels, and ambitious standards would apply to new public buildings. Municipalities would get help with heat planning, which shows where heating networks are feasible. State funding programs would be simplified and limited to measures consistent with climate neutrality. Energy advice from consumer centers would be expanded and made free, and counties and cities would hire renovation managers and set up energy competence centers. Skilled trades would be strengthened so that labor shortages do not slow the transition.

The Greens want to give low-income households more support for energy-efficient renovation and split renovation costs for rental buildings among landlords, tenants and the state. Revenue from carbon pricing should flow back to people as directly as possible. The platform argues that rent increases after renovations are often higher than the energy savings.

The Greens want the costs of clean heating shared fairly. People with little money should get more support. For rental buildings, landlords, renters and the state should share the costs. Money from the carbon price should go back to the people.

State funding programs would get a social tier with higher funding rates for low-income households. Support for homeowners would also be improved with state money, because many cannot afford an extensive renovation so far. Applications would become simpler and more digital. The party welcomes the federal agreement to abolish the EEG surcharge (a levy on electricity for renewables) from 2023 and the planned relief on energy prices. According to the platform, the rising carbon price makes prices more honest.

The Greens want to use natural gas only as far as needed for a secure supply during the transition. New gas plants and pipelines would be allowed only if they can later run on climate-neutral gases such as hydrogen. The platform names biogas from residues and geothermal energy as alternatives.

The Greens want to use little natural gas. Gas should only be for a transition period. New gas plants must be able to run on hydrogen later. The same goes for new pipelines. Biogas should come from manure and waste. Heat from the ground should be used too.

New gas plants would mainly replace coal plants in district heating networks where renewable heat and waste heat are not yet sufficient, and must not hold back renewable heat. The platform warns that costly new facilities tie the state down for decades. Biogas operators would switch to manure and residues, if possible by 2035; freed-up land could be used for food, forest, rewetted moors or building materials. Heat pumps using near-surface geothermal heat would continue to be subsidized. First research projects on deep geothermal energy would be supported, without fracking or other methods that endanger water.

The Greens want to close the uranium enrichment plant in Gronau as quickly as possible. In the platform's view, the nuclear phase-out is not yet complete in North Rhine-Westphalia. The party also pushes for shutting down nuclear plants near the border in neighboring countries.

There is a uranium plant in Gronau. Uranium is the fuel for nuclear power plants. The Greens want to close this plant quickly. Nuclear plants near the border should also be shut down. There should be one plan for nuclear waste for all of Germany.

At the federal level, the party wants the export ban in the Atomic Energy Act to cover residues from Gronau as well. It stands by the agreed procedure in the search for a final repository. For interim storage sites such as Ahaus, it calls for a nationwide overall plan with uniform safety rules, developed with those affected. All avenues of objection would be used against nuclear plants near the border. The need for and location of the planned nuclear waste logistics center in Würgassen would be critically reviewed.

The Greens want to resolve conflicts between climate-related infrastructure and species protection through clear rules and to speed up planning procedures. Two percent of the state's area is to be used for new wind turbines. Areas with core populations of sensitive species are to be excluded from the outset.

The Greens want to build more wind turbines. Two percent of the state's land should be available for this. Turbines should not stand where many sensitive animals live. Offices and courts should get more staff. This should make planning faster.

Planning and permitting authorities and courts are to get more staff and faster procedures. Public participation is to be early and binding, and environmental and climate impact assessments are to come at the start of the process. The expertise of environmental groups is to be used under contractual arrangements. Protection programs are to strengthen affected species in their core areas and more than offset harm elsewhere. Repowering is to be used to remove turbines at conflict-prone sites, and automatic shutdown systems are to protect birds of prey and bats.

The Greens want to develop NRW into a leading technology hub for green hydrogen. Because this hydrogen will stay scarce, it is to be used only where no alternative exists. Networks and import routes are to be expanded quickly.

The Greens want more green hydrogen in NRW. Green hydrogen is made with green electricity. There is not much of it. So industry should get it first. The state should build pipelines for hydrogen.

The platform names the chemical, steel and cement industries as well as aviation and shipping as areas of use. The state's hydrogen roadmap is to be revised, regulatory hurdles removed and investments supported. The existing hydrogen network is to grow as needed, and the reuse of natural gas pipelines is to be examined. Imports are to arrive via northern Germany and pipelines from abroad. The Greens reject blending hydrogen into the public gas grid, arguing it does not help the climate and would make hydrogen scarcer for industry.

The Greens want to put the chemical industry on a course in line with the 1.5-degree target. To do so, electricity in NRW is to come entirely from renewable sources by 2035. More recycling and a move away from fossil raw materials are also meant to change the sector.

The Greens want to make the chemical industry climate-friendly. By 2035, all electricity should come from wind and sun. Companies should recycle more materials. A new institute should do research on this.

Chemical companies are to be able to switch from coal and natural gas to electricity from wind and sun. This includes new plants in NRW and an expansion of power grids that carry wind power from northern Germany into the state. An institute for plastics recycling is to be set up as an innovation hub for all of NRW, since chemical recycling still needs research. Fossil feedstocks are to be replaced by renewable raw materials grown in a nature-friendly way.

The Greens want universities to lead by example on climate protection and plan a program for climate-neutral science by 2035. It includes renovating buildings and more sustainability in teaching and research.

The Greens want climate-neutral universities by 2035. Climate-neutral means the universities no longer harm the climate. Buildings would be renovated for this. Degree programs should also cover more about sustainability.

A modernization program would clear the renovation backlog; universities, university hospitals and student services would be renovated to climate-friendly standards and built accessibly in the future. Green Offices with student participation would serve as contact points for sustainability. Building projects could be accompanied by construction committees with equal representation. Education for sustainable development would get more room in degree programs. Part of the state's research funding would temporarily focus on paths to climate neutrality, and international cooperation on topics such as climate protection and pandemic response would be supported.

The Greens want NRW to become climate neutral before 2040 if possible, a goal they derive from the European Green Deal. The UN Sustainable Development Goals are to be anchored in every state ministry, and bills and public contracts are to undergo a mandatory check for social and ecological standards. The party rejects the trade agreements CETA and Mercosur in their current form.

The Greens want NRW to be climate neutral before 2040 if possible. Climate neutral means the state no longer harms the climate. New laws should get a sustainability check. This check looks at whether they are good for people and nature. The Greens reject the trade deals CETA and Mercosur as they are now. Companies should reuse raw materials more often.

In the platform's view, progress on the 2030 Agenda and the climate targets is too slow. The UN Sustainable Development Goals are to become a fixed part of the work of all ministries, and municipalities are to get help with this as well. The mandatory sustainability check is to apply to draft laws and to the awarding of public contracts. The party names fair and sustainable trade as a foundation. The circular economy is also to be expanded, for example through sustainable product design and more recyclable raw materials. The state is to support industry financially in this, and the platform suggests sector agreements as a framework.