Climate group hits carmakers

A GERMAN environmental group said yesterday it was suing car giants BMW and Daimler to force them to reduce emissions faster, following recent court victories for climate activists.

Environmental Action Germany (DUH) has submitted applications to courts in Stuttgart and Munich, arguing that the carmakers need to set themselves more ambitious climate goals, including ending the sale of fossil-fuel cars by 2030.

While the manufacturers have announced plans to transition away from petrol and diesel vehicles, the plaintiffs say their strategies are insufficient to meet global targets.

The companies were “torpedoing climate protection and the Paris agreement with highly polluting vehicles”, DUH vice-president Barbara Metz charged.

In early September, DUH and Greenpeace sent letters to the two carmakers, as well as Volkswagen and gas company Wintershall, asking them to commit to more ambitious targets for reducing carbon emissions.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler declined to sign up to the climate organisations’ proposals.