Climate change in Hamburg

Climate change in the German state of Hamburg affects various environments and industries, including the port.

Greenhouse gas emissions

Greenhouse gas emissions decreased from 12,700,000 tonnes in 1990 to 10,400,000 million tonnes in 2021.

Impacts of climate change

Geographical temperature variation

Some districts in Hamburg are significantly hotter than others, due to a lack of green spaces and an abundance of asphalt.

Flooding

Flooding would become more likely.

Response

In 2013, a referendum to buy back the energy network, the gas network and the district heating network for the city was successful.

Legislation

Hamburger Klimaschutzgesetz

Hamburg Climate Protection Act
Bürgerschaft of Bremen
Keywords
climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation
Status: In force (amended)

In 2020, the Act was amended so that the state is required to achieve a reduction of 55% compared to 1990.

Klimaschutzstärkungsgesetz

The Act amends the Climate Protection Act so that itrequires that all new taxis are zero-emission.

Strengthening Climate Protection Act
Bürgerschaft of Bremen
Keywords
climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation
Status: In force (amended)

There is a temporary exemption for taxis with more than 8 seats that would last until 2027. The Act also subsidises purchases of zero-emission vehicles.

Only a small proportion of citizens' proposals were included in the white paper produced by the Government.

People's initiative

In March 2025, a people's initiative for strengthening the state's climate legislation passed the petition stage, as it passed the threshold of the required number of signatures. The initiative would:

• legally bind the state to its emissions targets;
• require that the state achieve a 70% reduction in emissions by 2030 and achieve net zero emissions by 2040, which would be.

The referendum would be held in September 2025. Mayor Peter Tschentscher said that the referendum may threaten the consensus for climate action.