The scandal surrounding dubious climate projects in China is far from over. Environment Minister Lemke wants to prevent future fraud – and emphasizes the responsibility of the previous government.
In the scandal surrounding dubious climate projects in China, Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (Greens) is promising better precautions to prevent fraud. Her ministry wants to “improve fraud prevention at the national level,” Lemke explained after a special session of the Environment Committee on the subject in the Bundestag. To this end, her ministry wants to present an amendment to the law this year, Lemke further announced. As part of this, the current model for counting CO2 savings towards the climate balance of companies (“GHG quota”) should also be revised.
40 of 69 China projects suspected of fraud
The background is a suspected network of fraud in connection with climate projects in China, which the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) has been investigating for weeks. As was revealed in June, German mineral oil companies may have had a contribution credited to their CO2 balances that was due to climate protection projects, some of which probably did not exist. 40 of 69 projects in China are suspected of irregularities. In eight cases, the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) recently decided to refuse to grant the companies the certificates they had previously applied for. The certificates are necessary in order to have the CO2 savings credited to the so-called greenhouse gas reduction quota (GHG) – a quota that the companies must meet due to climate protection requirements.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, it is unlikely, given the current state of the investigation, that the companies themselves knew anything about the fraud in China in advance. And if that were the case, it would be very difficult to prove it, a spokesperson for the ministry recently stressed. In addition to its own investigations and those of the Berlin public prosecutor’s office, the UBA says it has now also hired an international law firm to clarify the alleged fraud cases. Environment Minister Lemke had all new applications for projects of this kind stopped with effect from July 1 of this year.
Lemke sees main responsibility with previous government
The Green politician also stressed after the most recent meeting of the Environment Committee that her ministry had “acted quickly, consistently and transparently” after the first reports of suspected cases. She again blamed the “CDU-led previous government” for the fraud-prone system. This government had “created a system that was structurally non-transparent and prone to fraud,” said Lemke. Above all, the control options were completely inadequate. The Union, on the other hand, sees Lemke as responsible and accuses the minister of possibly having taken measures too late to curb the fraud.
Source: Stern
