Germany’s lower house of parliament passed a bill on Friday on phasing out oil and gas heating systems after months of wrangling, but the legislation was criticized by conservatives as too costly and environmentalists as not strong enough.
The bill aims to cut greenhouse emissions in Germany’s building sector, which was responsible for 112 million tonnes of greenhouse gases last year, or 15 per cent of the country’s total emissions. Under pressure from the FDP, the ruling coalition agreed in June to dilute the bill to give more time for citizens and landlords to switch their boilers.“We have fundamentally changed it … It is no longer a law that people should be afraid of because the state climbs into their boiler room,” Lindner said in a post on social media platform X on Friday.
Environmental groups criticized the bill as it will allow constitutionally enshrined climate targets to be missed, adding that various options the legislation offers as alternatives for renewable energy heat pumps such as hydrogen and biomass were too expensive and risky for consumers.Under the bill, heating systems installed in new developments and in old buildings located in areas with a municipal heating plan will have to run on 65 per cent renewable energy.