Germany pledges to adjust climate law after court verdict

The German government on Friday announced that it will swiftly adjust its law aiming to curb climate change

BERLIN -- The German government on Friday announced that it will swiftly adjust its law aiming to curb climate change, after the country's top court ruled that existing legislation places an unfair burden on younger generations. Germany's Constitutional Court said Thursday that the government must set clear goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions after 2030. The verdict was a victory for campaigners, who had argued that the measures put forward so far are insufficient to meet the Paris climate accord's goal of keeping global warming well below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit), ideally no more than 1.5 C (2.7 F) by 2100. “This is a big victory for the young people who filed the lawsuits,” government spokesman Steffen Seibert said, but added that the court had approved the basic principle behind legislation passed two years ago. The climate law details how the country will cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 55% from 1990 levels over the next decade, but not for the period from 2031 to 2050, by when Germany wants to stop emitting more than can be captured through natural or technological means.