Open editorial: "The quiet revolution in climate protection"

The quiet revolution in the reform of the German climate protection law is the introduction of targets for the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, comment two scientists inside the Dialogue on Climate Economics. In doing so, Germany is acknowledging a key finding of climate science, such as that outlined in the IPCC's special report on 1.5 degrees Celsius global warming: Without CO2 removal, we will neither succeed in repaying the credit of excess emissions that we are currently borrowing from the atmosphere due to slow emissions reductions, nor in achieving the goal of "net zero" emissions after 2045. At the same time, the German government remains timid about removal targets: natural sinks, as currently only provided for in the Climate Protection Act, will not be sufficient, emphasize Jan Minx and Arwen Colell (both MCC Berlin).