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Otis Hoffman, et al. v. State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern - petition

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Otis Hoffman, et al. v. State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern - order

Filing Year For Action

On September 9, 2021, Otis Hoffman, Camille Marie Damm, Hannes Damm, and two children, supported by environmental organization Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH; Environmental Action Germany) brought a constitutional claim against the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV), for its failure to adopt a climate protection law. In January 2021, a climate bill was introduced to the state parliament, but rejected in April 2021. Plaintiffs invoked the state’s duty to protect their fundamental rights, to request that the state legally stipulate a GHG emissions reduction pathway towards achieving climate neutrality by 2045, to comply with the Federal Climate Protection Act and the overarching 1.5°C temperature target, as informed by the Paris Agreement. This case is part of a series of eleven separate constitutional complaints supported by DUH against ten federal states, following the Constitutional Court’s Neubauer decision in 2021.

The plaintiffs relied on the Constitutional Court’s decision in <a href="https://climatecasechart.com/non-us-case/neubauer-et-al-v-germany/">Neubauer v. Germany</a>, following which Germany adjusted its climate goals at the federal level. Plaintiffs argued that codification of a legally binding reduction path is also required at the state level, as states bear co-responsibility for protecting lives and civil liberties, including safeguarding the natural foundations of life for future generations, within their own sphere of competence. Plaintiffs argued that inaction by MV breaches both plaintiffs’ fundamental rights, and the state’s constitutional obligations. Plaintiffs asserted a violation by the state of its duty to protect, and invoked their constitutional rights, to defend themselves against considerable future restrictions on their freedoms which – in view of rapidly progressing climate change – are to be considered inevitable and are already reflected in the lack of action by the MV legislature.

On January 18, 2022, the First Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court did not admit the eleven complaints for adjudication, on the basis of a lack of adequate prospects. Widely in alignment with its decision in <a href="https://climatecasechart.com/non-us-case/neubauer-et-al-v-germany/">Neubauer v. Germany</a>, the Court acknowledged that greenhouse gas reduction burdens cannot be unilaterally offloaded onto the future. However, in the cases at hand, complainants’ fundamental rights were not violated preemptively, because the state legislatures are not subject to a CO2 emissions budget, which, according to the Court in <a href="https://climatecasechart.com/non-us-case/neubauer-et-al-v-germany/">Neubauer v. Germany</a> is a prerequisite for such an effect. Rather, it is the federal German legislature that is bound by the CO2 budget, but has a prerogative with respect to its implementation. As regards the federal states, the Court clarified that they too are responsible for climate protection, in particular by virtue of Article 20a of the Basic Law.  

Otis Hoffman, et al. v. State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

Terrestrial means "of the earth" and relates to the risks to ecological system that includes all living organisms and their interactions within land-based environments, such as forests, grasslands, and deserts.

Heavy precipitation refers to any form of weather where substances fall from the sky, including rain, snow, sleet, or hail.

A ban is a legal action that prevents the sale or supply of a product or service, or that recalls a product from the market. Examples are bans on SF6, greenwashing, fossil fuel advertisement or single-use plastics.

A drought is an extended period of unusually dry weather marked by a significant and sustained lack of precipitation, falling below a specific threshold over a large area for more than a month

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Actions to adapt human health, healthcare systems and well-being to climate change.

Air pollution involves harmful contaminants in the air, affecting both indoor and outdoor environments. It can lead to health issues like respiratory diseases and heart problems, and climate impacts such as global warming. Pollutants can damage plants, trees, habitats, and water bodies like rivers and lakes.

Activities that provide lodging, food, and entertainment services to guests, including hotels, restaurants, and resorts.

A commitment to balance GHG emissions with removal by a certain point in time, effectively reducing the net emissions to zero

Financial support to help individuals manage the effects of unexpected events, securing their livelihoods and increasing the resilience of people and businesses to the changing climate. It’s especially vital in developing regions where everyday risks, climate-related weather extremes, or crop failures can push people into poverty. Without insurance, people may have to resort to selling assets or cutting consumption to cope with losses.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater systems to climate change.

This sector involves managing waste treatment, sanitation, pollution control and environmental cleanup.

Production of electricity and heat from solar irradiation.

Conditions that enhance the feasibility of adaptation options. Enabling conditions include finance, technological innovation, strengthening policy instruments, institutional capacity, multi-level governance and changes in human behaviour and lifestyles.

This sector involves the distribution, treatment, and conservation of water resources.

Climate change impacts our society by disrupting the natural, economic and social systems we depend on. Physical hazards and underlying vulnerabilities can lead to increased resource competition for food and water, which can heighten the risk of conflict.

Hot temperature extremes are daily maximum temperatures  that were exceeded on average once in a decade or once in 50 years, and includes heatwaves.

This sector provides communication services, software development, and IT solutions.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

Codes and standards are regulatory instruments that specify minimum standards to protect health and safety. This ranges from performance standards, which prescribe outcomes while allowing flexibility to achieve compliance, to the more prescriptive approach of technology-specific standards.

The cryosphere is the frozen part of the Earth—it includes sea ice, glaciers, snow, and ice sheets. It helps regulate the climate and weather by reflecting sunlight. Rising temperatures are causing melting, leading to sea ice loss, glacier collapse, and glacier landslides and avalanches. This threatens the livelihoods of around 700 million people who rely on the cryosphere for food, water security, and cultural practices.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

A long-lived, colourless gas, chiefly emitted from fossil fuel combustion, deforestation and cement production.

Tradable permits are market-based tools that grant permission for specific activities, frequently used to regulate emissions. These permits can be issued within a trading system to manage environmental impacts.

The activities of industries that transforms raw materials into finished goods through industrial processes.

The activities of industries involved in the production, distribution, and sale of energy, including electricity, gas, and renewables.

The release of heat-trapping gases, primarily from human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and industry.

Any substance with chemical properties that can cause physical harm to people or damage the environment, including ammonia, carbon monoxide, phosphine, chlorine, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, pesticides, dioxins, microplastics, benzene, asbestos, aflatoxins, fluoride, methanol, and toxins from marine sources.

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

Risks to the ecosystem health of the marine environment, including ocean warming, ocean acidification, and ocean deoxygenation, harming biodiversity, species health, ecosystem services, and coastal community livelihoods.

Climate change can have a range of impacts on technological system. Extreme weather events can cause infrastructure failures like power outages or damage to roads and bridges, as well as the impacts from waste following natural disasters. Human activities also cause technological impacts, such as the risks posed by oil spillage and leaks.

A target to reduce the prevalence of a greenhouse gas over a specific time frame

Activities that involve the cultivation of crops and raising of livestock for food, fibre, and other products essential for human life and industry.

Coal is a combustible sedimentary rock formed from carbonised plant matter, rich in carbon and hydrocarbons, and occurring in several main types including hard coal and brown coal.

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Kinetic energy of airflow transformed into useful energy, mostly electrical energy.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater, coastal and marine systems to climate change.

Zoning and spatial planning are both methods for guiding the distribution of people and activities in a space, and are regulatory restriction.

A potent, short-lived greehouse gas, largely released from livestock, fossil fuel extraction and waste management.

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Otis Hoffman, et al. v. State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern - petition

Target

Policy instrument

Risk

Impacted group

Renewable energy

Fossil fuel

Greenhouse gas

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance