Environmental organisations urge German parties to scrap Nord Stream 2 pipeline

Environmental organisations NABU and WWF have urged Germany’s parties, currently negotiating to form a government, to stop the natural gas pipeline project Nord Stream 2, a joint press release by the two organisations says. In an open letter to party leaders of the conservative CDU/CSU alliance and the Social Demcorats (SPD), the conservationists say the pipeline that connects Germany with Russia via the Baltic Sea is a “climate policy cul-de-sac” that threatens the sea’s fragile eco system and erodes solidarity between member countries of the European Union. Nord Stream 2 not only puts Germany’s role as a trailblazer in climate protection in jeopardy but also fails to contribute to the diversification of the country’s energy supply by increasing the dependence on Russia, they say. The project that crosses several marine natural reserves has a planned operating time of 50 years, meaning that it would deliver natural gas well beyond 2050, the target year of the Paris Agreement by which Germany has pledged to do without fossil energy sources, NABU and WWF say.

Find the press release in German here.

For background, read the news digest entry German authorities issue first partial permit for Nord Stream 2 pipeline and the CLEW factsheet Germany’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.