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German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition AGerman Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in TransitionAndrea Furnaro, Philipp Herpich, Hanna Brauers, Pao-Yu Oei, Claudia Kemfert, and Wesley Look Report 21-13 November 2021Resources for the Future and Environmental Defense Fund iAbout the AuthorsAndrea Furnaro is a PhD candidate in the Geography Department at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she studies the political economy of low-carbon energy transitions and environmental governance. She has examined the German coal phase-out as part of her PhD thesis and is a guest researcher of the CoalExit research group.Philipp Herpich is a research associate and part of the Coal Exit research group at Technische Universitt Berlin and Europa-Universitt Flensburg. He has been involved in numerous projects advising German ministries on coal phase-out and just transition policies.Hanna Brauers is a post doctoral researcher at Europa-Universitt Flensburg and founding member of the CoalExit research group. Her PhD thesis at Technische Universitt Berlin examined the political economy of energy transitions with a focus on coal and gas phase-out in various European countries.Pao-Yu Oei is a professor for economics of sustainable energy systems at Europa-Universitt Flensburg (EUF) and head of the 30-member research group “CoalExit” at EUF, TU Berlin and DIW Berlin. Part of his work is reflected in his co-ordination of the independent research hub CoalTransitions, representing more than 100 researchers from 25 research institutions based on 5 continents, examining the transition from fossil fuels towards renewable energy sources.Claudia Kemfert is head of the department of Energy, Transportation, Environment at the German Institute of Economic Research (DIW Berlin) since April 2004 and a professor of Energy Economics and Energy Policy at Leuphana University. Her research activities focus on the evaluation of climate and energy policy strategies.Wesley Look is a senior research associate at Resources for the Future. Previously, Look served as Advisor on Energy and Environment to the US Senate Finance Committee and ranking member Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR). Look advised Senator Wyden on a range of clean energy and climate policies, including the senators energy policy portfolio on the Senate Energy Committee. From 2007 to 2010, Look advised US cities on climate and energy policy as Program Officer with the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI).About the ProjectThis report is part of a series of papers prepared by Resources for the Future (RFF), Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), and other partners that examine policies and programs to promote fairness for workers and communities in a transition to a lowgreenhouse gas emissions economy, often referred to as a just transition. The series looks at existing public policies and programs, grouped thematically as “tools German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition iiin the toolbox” for policymakers seeking effective strategies to address challenges associated with transition. We focus on policies and programs that can support workers and communities in regions where coal, oil, or natural gas production or consumption has been a leading employer and driver of prosperity. About RFFResources for the Future (RFF) is an independent, nonprofit research institution in Washington, DC. Its mission is to improve environmental, energy, and natural resource decisions through impartial economic research and policy engagement. RFF is committed to being the most widely trusted source of research insights and policy solutions leading to a healthy environment and a thriving economy. The views expressed here are those of the individual authors and may differ from those of other RFF experts, its officers, or its directors.About EDFEnvironmental Defense Fund (EDF) is one of the worlds leading environmental nonprofit organizations. EDFs mission is to preserve the natural systems on which all life depends. Guided by science and economics, EDF finds practical and lasting solutions to the most serious environmental problems.Sharing Our WorkOur work is available for sharing and adaptation under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) license. You can copy and redistribute our material in any medium or format; you must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made, and you may not apply additional restrictions. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. You may not use the material for commercial purposes. If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material. For more information, visit https:/creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition iiiAbbreviationsABMs Labor Procurement Measures AFTSC Act on Financing the Termination of Subsidized Coal MiningAPR Action Program RuhrCC Commission on Growth, Structural Change and Employment (or Coal Commission)CCCL Coal Commission and Coal Exit LawsCPGTA Coal Power Generation Termination ActDPR Development Program RuhrEFRD European Fund for Regional DevelopmentESF European Social FundEU European UnionFICSR Future Initiative for Coal and Steel RegionsFIRNRW Future Initiative for the Regions of North RhineWestphaliaGRW Joint National/Lnder Task for the Improvement of Regional Economic Structures IBA International Architecture ExhibitionIBAEP IBA Emscher ParkJT Just TransitionJTF Just Transition Fund JTM Just Transition MechanismLDA Land Development AgencyNRW North RhineWestphaliaNEA National Employment Agency SMEs small and medium enterprisesResources for the Future and Environmental Defense Fund ivExecutive SummaryThis report examines public initiatives implemented in Germany to support workers and communities impacted by the decline in coal production from the 1960s to the present. The main goal is to present key policy alternatives and lessons from the German case to inform Just Transition (JT) processes in other countries and regions. With the prospect of phasing out coal and sharply cutting use of other fossil fuels in the United States due to greenhouse gas mitigation efforts, it is worth looking at the successes and failures of past transitions. Germany has intentionally steered its coal reduction process since the 1960s to prevent detrimental economic and social consequences. A central characteristic of the German approach to mitigate the impacts of coal decline for workers and regions is the use of integrative policies based on a combination of policy goals and mechanisms. The report examines historical policies (implemented between 1968 and 2019) and present policies. Their main goals can be characterized as (a) economic diversification and reorientation; (b) workforce support; (c) social well-being and quality of life, and (d) environmental remediation and protection. Moreover, these policies have commonly employed three mechanisms: (1) financial support for public organizations, businesses, and workers; (2) service and assistance for public organizations, businesses, and workers; and (3) direct investments. Large public investments in infrastructure and environmental remediation have been central goals of the policies analyzed over time. Providing financial support and assistance for businesses and workers has also been a key component of most policies. These policies especially targeted businesses until the 1980s. In more recent decades, a tendency toward financial support of local governments and nonprofit organizations can be observed. The report also characterizes the implemented policies according to their governance structures, namely their design, implementation, and forms of public participation. From the 1960s through the 1980s, top-down policies predominated; these were designed, implemented, and administered by subnational governments with limited participation of local stakeholders. Since the end of the 1980s, municipal governments have implemented a more regionalized approach with bottom-up policies, including local participation. Beyond the policies that explicitly support coal workers and regions, key “baseline policies” played a large role in JT in Germany. They include the German social security system, the labor system, and the system for regional fiscal equalization. In this report, we highlight the following lessons from the German experience to inform JT policymaking in other contexts:1. Historical policies implemented in Germany tended to focus on protecting the coal industry and promoting coal production. Since the 2000s, policies began to German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition vproactively steer the transition away from coal. This anticipatory and preventive approach had a positive impact on job creation and in the formation of new industries in coal regions (IWH 2020; Bade and Alm 2010; Untiedt et al. 2010). Following a similar approach, the Commission on Growth, Structural Change and Employment (also called the Coal Commission) and subsequent laws have aimed to reduce the risk of economic, social, and environmental problems caused by the decline in coal production. In comparison to the transition in other old industrial regions in Europe, such as the United Kingdom, the reduction of hard coal production in Germany during the 1960s was handled in a more socially compatible way (Brauers et al. 2020), as none of the former coal workers became unemployed directly but instead either entered early retirement or follow-up employment that helped to protect their socioeconomic status.2. Large-scale government investments and industrial policies have been central aspects of the approach to support coal regions in Germany. In the beginning of the German coal industry crisis, these policies incentivized investments that aimed to restrengthen or conserve the role of traditional industries, which prevented a transition and instead led to high debts and deficits in public budgets. The increasingly proactive role of the public sector in regional economic policy has been important to attract new businesses and promote economic growth. The implemented policies helped to create new economic opportunities and jobs in many of the locations where they have been deployed (IWH 2020; Bade and Alm 2010; Untiedt et al. 2010). 3. Policies to support coal regions have been particularly successful when tailored to the local realities and needs. Including active participation of local stakeholders in the design and implementation of these policies is important not only from a procedural justice perspective but also to create more locally coherent and effective interventions. Incorporating local actors also increases social acceptance and the usage of existing regional knowledge, an important factor in accelerating the transition away from coal. The German experience also shows the importance of providing local governments with enough financial resources to implement these measures themselves. This can reduce the need for coordination between the political levels and hence reduce related transaction costs.4. Most of the policies implemented in Germany to support coal regions combine multiple policy objectives. Since the 1990s, policies have prioritized the quality of life of local communities through economic, cultural, and environmental interventions. This integrative and holistic approach is important for addressing the transition away from coal as a multidimensional problem and creating synergies between different interventions. This approach contributes to improving the attractiveness of addressed regions and can promote social cohesion. 5. The German social security system, the labor system, and the system of regional fiscal equalization are critical components in Germanys efforts to assist workers and communities affected by the decline in coal production. Given the relatively strong support that the German social security net provides to coal workers, most of the policies included in this review should be seen as a complement to these baseline policies. Emphasizing that the JT policies exist in addition to these German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition vibaseline policies is particularly important in order to avoid overestimating their potential replicability in other contexts with weaker social and labor protection systems.6. These policies may provide valuable examples to inform the design of new JT initiatives in other contexts, although the challenges that lie ahead may require even more holistic and forward-looking initiatives to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels while investing in the future prosperity of workers and communities.German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition viiContents1. Introduction 11.1. Scope of this review 11.2. Types and mechanisms of JT policies 31.3. Governance structures 62. Coal Production and Use for Power Generation in Germany 72.1. Hard coal production 72.2. Lignite production 82.3. Coal power generation 93. Policies and Programs to Support Coal Workers and Regions in Germany 123.1. Baseline policies 123.1.1. The German social security system 123.1.2. Labor system 163.1.3. Regional equalization system 193.2. The overarching regional structural policy approach for a just coal transition 213.2.1. Creating integrative policies 223.2.2. Focusing on investment-intensive interventions 223.2.3. Developing material infrastructure 233.2.4. Creating regional cohesion 243.2.5. Tailoring to the local context 253.2.6. Supporting local governments 253.2.7. Shifting from a reactive to an anticipatory approach 263.3. JT policy type 1: Economic diversification and reorientation 263.3.1. Business attraction and support 263.3.2. Expansion of educational and research activities 283.3.3. Development of technology and innovation 293.3.4. Conserving a focus on energy 293.4. JT policy type 2: Workforce support 303.4.1. Integration of labor market policies into regional development policy 303.4.2. Financing or co-financing job procurement and employment measures 303.4.3. Extension of qualification and career counseling infrastructure 31German Just Transition: A Review of Public Policies to Assist German Coal Communities in Transition viii3.5. JT policy type 3: Social well-being and quality of life 323.5.1. Urban development 333.5.2. Culture and leisure 333.6. JT policy type 4: Environmental remediation and protection 343.6.1. Decommissioning and environmental remediation 343.6.2. Water managemen
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