GERMANY Law and Practice Contributed by: Friedrich Gebert, Hannah Düwel, Bernhard Gröhe and Clara Schmidt, ARQIS Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mbB
Influence on Environmental Permits Climate considerations are integrated into permit - ting procedures in particular through environmental impact assessments, nature conservation law and sector-specific regulatory requirements, for example, in energy, infrastructure and industrial projects. The principal German law governing emission-intensive projects in this context is the Federal Emission Control Act ( Bundes - Immissionsschutzgesetz – BImSchG). In addition, permitting authorities must take into account statutory climate targets under the Federal Climate Change Act and relevant EU legislation, espe - cially where projects may significantly affect green - house gas emissions. Political Debate and Regulatory Pressure (Political Backlash) Climate policies and regulations have increasingly become the subject of political and public debate in Germany, particularly in relation to energy prices, industrial competitiveness and administrative bur - dens. This has led to political pressure to streamline or roll back regulatory measures. Recent discussions at both German and EU level reflect efforts to balance ambitious climate objectives with economic and prac - tical considerations. While Germany remains com - mitted to its national and EU climate targets, future climate legislation is likely to place greater emphasis on regulatory flexibility, technological neutrality and reducing compliance burdens for businesses. 2.4 Key Policy/Regulatory Authorities Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety Following elections and a government reorganisation in 2025, the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety ( Bundesministerium für Umwelt , Klimaschutz , Naturschutz und nukleare Sicherheit – BMUKN) is once again the lead ministry and policy authority for national and international climate policy in Germany. The ministry fulfils its tasks through a combination of legal, economic, co-operative and communicative instruments. One of its core responsibilities is shaping the legal framework for climate change policies. The Ministry
extreme heat. The DAS is developed by the govern - ment in co-operation with scientists, relevant associa - tions and citizens. The federal government as well as the federal states publish monitoring reports on the evaluation of measures every four years. Other Laws Beyond the KSG, Germany uses additional legislative and regulatory measures to implement and support its national climate policy and to contribute to the EU’s NDC under the Paris Agreement. These include the Renewable Energy Sources Act ( Erneuerbare - Ener- gien - Gesetz – EEG), which promotes the expansion of renewable energy, the Fuel Emissions Trading Act ( Brennstoffemissionshandels - Gesetz – BEHG), which introduced national carbon pricing for traffic and heat - ing, and the Building Energy Act ( Gebäudeenergiege- setz – GEG), which governs energy efficiency in build - ings and decarbonisation in heating. Reforms to the EEG and the abolition of the GEG were agreed in the coalition agreement of the new German government in April 2025. A revised version of the EEG and a new Building Modernisation Act ( Gebäudemod- ernisierungsgesetz – GMG), intended to replace the GEG, are currently under interministerial co-ordination within the federal government. The GMG would allow new oil and gas heating systems to remain in use for longer provided they gradually incorporate specified shares of renewable fuels, potentially weakening the pace of emissions reductions in the building sector and making Germany’s national climate targets more difficult to achieve. Support for Farmers In Germany, climate adaptation measures are sup - ported through a combination of federal and state- level programmes. In the agricultural sector, financial support and advisory services have been established to help farmers adapt to climate-related risks such as droughts, heatwaves and changing precipitation patterns, including through sustainable irrigation prac - tices and climate-resilient cultivation methods. Ger - many has also expanded initiatives relating to water resource management, flood protection and the res - toration of natural retention areas in response to an increase in extreme weather events.
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