What worked for decades due to the global political climate, which was favorable for us, no longer works: my diesel, my chop, my heating. Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that! Everything seems somehow endangered, whole life models are on the brink. This is not only frightening, it also hurts – on a small and large scale.
The pace of change is tremendous. Especially after so many years of ordered downtime. Habeck’s so-called heating hammer was actually a bomb that exploded before our eyes. Millions of homeowners have seen their old boilers ripped out.
Habeck’s heating plans have potential for social explosives
To this day, it is unclear who pierced the underlying draft of the amendment to the Building Energy Act (GEG) to the “Bild”. The FDP to stage itself as a keeper of small and medium-sized businesses, the SPD-led chancellery to wipe out Habeck, or even the Greens themselves to hammer the urgency of the heat transition into the people?
In any case, the outcry was quite loud and to be expected, since the plans meant nothing more than a de facto ban on oil and gas heating from next year.
In an interview with FOCUS online, the housing and space sociologist Torsten Bölting attested to the project’s potential for social explosives. “Citizens are first massively unsettled before they vaguely row back,” Bölting clarifies. That creates no trust in politics and is a danger to society.
The professor of social sciences at the EBZ Business School in Bochum warns: “The potential for protest is increasing. The milieus that are dissatisfied are increasing. This challenges us as a society, because we cannot simply leave these groups behind.” Bölting believes that it is much more important to take the people who are affected with us than the technology – in this context the heat pump was the main topic of discussion – in to put the foreground.
Habeck criticizes communication in the heat transition
Habeck seems to have understood that. In any case, let the words of the Federal Minister of Economics in an interview with the weekly newspaper “The time” conclude on it. There, the Vice Chancellor answered the question of what he had done wrong in the debate about the planned ban on new oil and gas heating systems:
“There’s a lot of movement right now. More wind turbines, more solar systems, an end to fossil fuel combustion, the transformation of industry. We are currently making fundamental structural changes in every area of our economy, and people are feeling that. And then there are the rules for the heaters, which have a full impact on the private sphere. All this is necessary and time is short. But it creates uncertainty. We should have explained the project better from the start. After all, nobody comes into people’s houses and rips out a functioning heating system. We should have told the whole thing as a joint implementation story, not as a state regulation.”
A fitting self-analysis. But why only now? Why did Habeck react, if not in advance, at least immediately after the draft became known, instead of letting the report simmer for many days until it finally spilled over? He’s a man of words. One who can use language. Doctor of Philosophy.
Oil and gas heating is bad for the climate, but widespread
In terms of tonality, the current “Zeit” interview is reminiscent of that from April 2021, in which Habeck revealed his “bittersweet” emotional world shortly after stepping aside for Annalena Baerbock as the Greens’ candidate for chancellor. Resignation and self-pity, both sometimes boldly presented, always resonate with Habeck.
Above all, voters want one thing from politicians: get rid of problems, resolve conflicts. The great conflict of the heat transition in one sentence: Oil and gas heating systems are bad for the climate, but 75 percent of German households have one in the basement.
If one now suggests to them that, as in the picture described by Habeck, someone will soon come to tear them out, one should not expect that the way down will be laid out with rose petals, but rather that the door will be slammed in his face. It will not come to that, according to Habeck.
Conflict about heaters maximum on ice
Does that mean the cow is completely off the ice? Not at all!
Because in the 16-page paper that the coalition partners produced in their 30-hour meeting, there is comparatively little about the heating problem and the little that is also formulated quite vaguely. One can therefore be very excited about the law, which should be in the Bundestag by the summer.
What it says is as follows: From January 1, 2024, every newly installed heating system should be operated with 65 percent renewable energy. Care should be taken to ensure that an approach that is open to all technologies is pursued and that sufficient transitional periods are available.
Is it now mandatory to install more climate-friendly heating systems or not? What does “as much as possible” mean in this context? The draft law, leaked a few weeks ago, stipulated that every newly installed heating system should be powered by 65 percent renewable energy, which would have amounted to a de facto ban on new oil and gas heating systems.
Habeck has to say what exactly is going on now
Nothing has been heard from Habeck. Again, the eloquent minister missed an opportunity to finally provide clarity. Consciously or unconsciously, is unclear. Just as, for example, newly installed gas heaters should be operated with 65 percent renewable energy. Considering that blue or even green hydrogen isn’t exactly available in rough quantities right now.
So there are still unanswered questions and the heating conflict is set to be resubmitted in a few weeks. It would be nice if Habeck used the time to do exactly what he criticized himself for in the “Zeit” interview: explain the project better from the start!
If he doesn’t, he shouldn’t be surprised if he is allowed to stand as the Green Party’s candidate for chancellor in 2025, but voters have turned their backs on him to date. After all, what’s the use of saving the climate if it destroys society. What is needed now is empathy for people, you could also say warmth without a pump, instead of dismissing justified objections and worries.
Or to paraphrase Robert Habeck’s philosopher colleague: “If you don’t know the port you want to sail in, there is no wind for you.” (Seneca)
The Greens – Robert Habeck: Woman, place of residence and luxury photographer
