Climate Protection during Recession – First or Last Priority?
March 24th 2009“Can we afford climate protection even in the face of the current economic crisis?” This was one of the key questions of a panel discussion event organized by the BDI’s initiative ‘Business for Climate Protection’ on March 24th in Berlin. For two hours Federal Economic Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, Siemens-CEO Peter Löscher, and Director and Office Manager of McKinsey Germany Frank Mattern discussed with their hosts BDI-President Hans-Peter Keitel as well as BDI Director General Werner Schnappauf, and 300 guests the interrelations of economic crisis and climate crisis, as well as costs and potentials of climate protection.
In the end it was clear: Climate protection must also be pursued in times of economic crisis, as every delay makes the mitigation of climate change more challenging and more costly. Moreover, climate protection could even be a way out of the crisis, since it offers great chances for growth at the “green” markets of the world and because an efficient use of energy cuts costs drastically, BDI President Hans-Peter Keitel said in his opening speech.
Federal Economic Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg said that climate protection was a subject especially important to him and answered the question, whether protecting the climate was possible in a recession, by clearly stating: “Now more than ever!” Particularly during a crisis, the potential for investments in climate protection should be taken advantage of, zu Guttenberg pointed out.
Peter Löscher, chair of BDI’s initiative, also made clear: “Climate protection is not a box of chocolates that can be spared in hard times.” In order to stop climate change, above all, innovations in climate and environmental technology were necessary. “So here we should not tighten the belt, but give industry the financial incentives and corporate freedom to enhance their innovative capacity”, Löscher demanded. A tax relief on research and development investments could be an important political impulse.
Today we do already possess the necessary technologies to reduce green house gas (GHG) emissions, as BDI’s currently updated climate study proves. It comes to the conclusion that a 30 percent reduction of GHG is possible in Germany by 2020, even under extreme volatility of energy prices. “There is an enormous potential for GHG mitigation and seizing it pays off for companies, no matter what the oil price is”, BDI President Hans-Peter Keitel concluded. However, politics had to ensure that the German industry could expand its innovativeness in the climate sector, that financial means are provided for, and that energy intensive companies in particular will not be forced to leave Europe on account of additional obligations and costs.