Joint CO2 targets must not diminish German industry, CDU leader warns EU | Germany | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/09/joint-co2-targets-must-not-diminish-german-industry-cdu-leader-warns-euThe frontrunner to succeed Angela Merkel as German chancellor has warned the EU that joint greenhouse gas targets must not come at the cost of diminishing the prowess of German industry, signalling a reluctance to join carbon reduction schemes planned in other European countries.
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To adjust our steel industry and our chemical industry so it becomes climate neutral will amount to an enormous reduction of emissions, the like of which history has never seen before. That’s why I believe it can be done without preaching abstinence or proscription. As a society we have the technological means to become climate neutral and still remain an industrial nation.”
Scientists question whether technological research can come up with game-changing innovations over the next decade. Work on “negative emissions” technology – sucking the CO2 out of the air to compensate for the ongoing release – has yet to yield a breakthrough, for example.
Unlike countries including the UK, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Belgium, Germany has yet to commit to a concrete date for phasing out petrol or diesel-powered passenger cars.