A German court on Tuesday rejected a case brought by the climate group Greenpeace against Volkswagen to ask the car giant to stop selling petrol and diesel vehicles from 2030.
The plaintiffs, the two heads of Greenpeace Germany and climate activist Clara Meyer, are also seeking to force the world’s second largest car manufacturer to reduce emissions by 65 percent by 2030 compared to 2018.
Greenpeace’s case is based on a landmark ruling by Germany’s constitutional court in April 2021, which found the government’s plans to curb CO2 emissions insufficient to meet the targets of the Paris climate agreement.
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As a result of the decision, the government of former chancellor Angela Merkel announced a date for Germany to achieve carbon neutrality five years to 2045, and raised the 2030 target for greenhouse gas reduction.
Greenpeace vs. Volkswagen
In the case against Volkswagen, Greenpeace asserted that the same obligations apply to private companies.
But the court in Braunschweig rejected the claims of the environmental group, saying that the legislature had fulfilled its obligation to protect the rights of citizens through better climate protection actions.
“The obligations of companies in the private sector do not exceed the duty of state protection,” the court said.
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Volkswagen said the court essentially confirmed its opinion by dismissing the case.
“Climate claims against selected companies are wrong and have no legal basis,” the group said in a statement.
another legal challenge against Volkswagen
But one of the plaintiffs, Roland Hipp, vowed to bring further legal challenges against Volkswagen.
“The last word has not been said in our climate complaint against Volkswagen, the court decision is only an intermediate step,” he said.
“We are planning further legal measures and are confident that we will also be able to legally move Volkswagen to do more to protect the climate.”
Germany’s biggest car maker has been dragged into several cases by climate activists.
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Last week, BMW won a similar case brought by activists at Deutsche Umwelthilfe who want to end the sale of combustion engine cars from 2030.
Greenpeace also supported a court case heard in Detmold against Volkswagen brought by farmers who claimed the pollution caused by the automotive giant violated their rights.