by Thorsten Koch

Federal Environment Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) has presented her social-ecological concept for an economic stimulus package on Monday. The concept should enable municipalities in Germany to invest sustainably. The proposals, if implemented, would bring significantly more orders to the environmental technology industry.

Schulze presented a study for which she commissioned four institutes, including the trade union-affiliated Institute for Macroeconomics. Climate protection is sustainable, said Schulze, and exemplified investments in public transport, new bike paths, and building renovation. Solar systems are to be installed on public buildings, which could be supported by special funding programs, she proposed. In addition, combustion drawings for oil and gas are to be scrapped in exchange for alternative heat sources.

Schulze said there was a chance that after the Corona crisis, society would become more climate-friendly, fairer and more crisis-proof. Important investments in climate protection would be made within the municipalities.

The Federal Association for Renewable Energies welcomed the socio-ecological advances and called for the hurdles for the energy industry to be lowered. For example, a law is required according to which there is no capping in photovoltaic systems. This had been agreed upon recently. It is particularly important that the share of renewable energies in the electricity mix will increase to 65 percent or more in the next ten years, the association emphasized. In the previous year, the share was at 46 percent.