Höfken: "Withdraw capital from fossil sectors - invest in green technologies of the future"

Climate protection targets can only be achieved by investing in green technologies of the future and sustainable investment strategies / Energy Agency to support municipalities with divestment strategies in future.

Months of a solar system — Months of a solar plant; © Marina Lohrbach/Fotolia

"To be climate neutral by 2050, we not only need to make additional investments in green and innovative technologies of the future. Above all, we also need a shift from existing investments in 'brown' raw materials such as coal, oil and gas to 'green' climate-friendly technologies. The phase-out of fossil fuels must be global and rapid, in line with the goals of the World Climate Conference. Only in this way can we realistically achieve the climate protection goals. Churches, municipalities and also companies are setting new standards here and demonstrating the feasibility of the changeover in both ecological and economic terms," said Environment Minister Ulrike Höfken today at the event "Divestment and Sustainable Finance", which took place during the Climate Protection Weeks in Rhineland-Palatinate.

Höfken discussed new sustainable financing approaches together with Saori Dubourg, member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE and member of the Council for Sustainable Development, Oberkirchenrat Heinz Thomas Striegler, Head of Church Administration of the Protestant Church in Hesse and Nassau and Chairman of the Working Group of Church Investors of the Protestant Church in Germany, as well as Christoph Bals, Political Director at Germanwatch e.V. and member of the Sustainable Finance Advisory Council of the German Federal Government.

According to the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the financial sector in particular has one of the greatest levers of influence in the short term to encourage other sectors of the economy to do more to protect the climate. The central tool here is divestment, a withdrawal of capital from markets and products that violate sustainability criteria, such as fossil-intensive industries, Höfken continued. "Rhineland-Palatinate is one of seven German states that has already passed a divestment resolution: The special assets of the state and the funds of state foundations are invested according to sustainable criteria," the minister explained. The Energy Agency Rhineland-Palatinate will support municipalities in the state in establishing divestment approaches in the future, Höfken announced. Here, the discussion is still in its infancy and further development in terms of content is necessary.

Whether municipalities, churches or companies: All players are called upon to examine their investment strategies and invest in a sustainable future. The City of Bonn is one of the pioneer cities with its path to sustainable financial investment. Carsten Buschmann, Head of Department at the City of Bonn, said: "The City of Bonn is pursuing a holistic approach that will be further expanded. Our experience in Bonn has shown that sustainable investing and returns are not mutually exclusive."

Climate Protection Weeks Rhineland-Palatinate:

During the Climate Protection Weeks Rhineland-Palatinate from 12 November to 11 December 2020, experts will discuss concrete instruments and measures against the climate crisis. From climate-efficient construction to climate funds and sustainable management, the events will highlight numerous approaches to achieving climate protection goals. In addition to top-class experts such as Prof. Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Prof. Claudia Kemfert or Christoph Bals, renowned companies and organisations such as BASF, Boehringer Ingelheim and the European Investment Bank, numerous national and international politicians from Germany, Luxembourg, Rwanda, Canada and the EU will be represented.

Detailed information on the climate protection weeks can be found at
here

Source: PM of the MUEEF RLP from 16.11.2020

Keywords: Renewable, Climate protection, Sustainable management, News Blog RLP, Environmental policy

Published 11. January 2016

More money for RLP municipalities for refugee aid

A bill on the State Reception Act will be submitted to the Landtag today. With this, the municipalities will receive more money for the reception, accommodation and care of asylum seekers. "The amendment to the State Reception Act will lead to a significant improvement in the financing of the task of assisting refugees for the municipalities and is an important basis for ensuring that the municipalities and the state continue to fulfil their tasks," said Minister President Malu Dreyer and Integration Minister Irene Alt.

Early yesterday evening, the municipal umbrella organisations and the Rhineland-Palatinate government jointly agreed on the cost reimbursement to be paid for refugee assistance expenses as of 1 January 2016. The starting point was the federal funds available to Rhineland-Palatinate according to the decision of the Federal Chancellor and the heads of government of the Länder on 24 September 2015. "We have worked out the necessary key points together so that they can now be introduced as a bill in the state parliament," said Finance Minister Doris Ahnen, who led the discussion together with State Secretary in the Ministry of Integration Margit Gottstein and State Secretary of Finance Salvatore Barbaro.

"I very much welcome the cornerstones that have been worked out jointly between the municipal umbrella organisations and the state government. They ensure that the state and the municipalities will continue to tackle the great challenge of taking in refugees together," said the Minister President.

Starting in 2016, the municipalities are to be paid a lump sum of 848 euros per month per refugee. This refers to the period from distribution to a local authority until the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees issues the first decision in the asylum procedure. This lump sum is paid out in full by the state exactly according to the number of refugees and the months. In this way, the municipalities are relieved effectively and quickly - regardless of how and when the federal government settles the relief for the Länder.

In addition, starting in 2016, the state will make a lump sum payment of 35 million euros at the beginning of each year for costs that are still incurred after the initial decision has been issued. For 2015, it is planned that Rhineland-Palatinate's share of the federal government's additional refugee billion of 48 million euros for the current year will be made available in full to the municipalities. Of this, 24 million euros will be provided as a lump-sum cost-share. The remaining 24 million euros of the refugee billion and another 20 million euros of Land money form an advance payment totalling 44 million euros on Land benefits due in 2016. The aim is to provide the municipalities with the necessary funds in a timely manner.

There is now also clarity for the distribution of federal funds to be used for child day care in the Länder after the abolition of the childcare allowance. Rhineland-Palatinate will receive a total of about 95 million euros from 2016 to 2018. These funds are to be divided equally between the municipalities and the state. To ensure that support is as even as possible, the municipalities will receive three equal annual instalments of around 16 million euros each (a total of around 48 million euros). These funds can be used flexibly within the framework of local target agreements to improve child day care and for additional expenditure in this area.

Source: PM from 06.11.2015

Keywords:
Refugee shelters, Funding, News Blog RLP, Housing policy