[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ module_class=”reverse-columns-mobile” _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”0px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.8″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.8″ text_font=”roboto-regular||||||||” text_text_color=”#003a7c” custom_margin=”||0px||false|false” custom_margin_tablet=”||15px||false|false” custom_margin_phone=”” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|tablet” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]Credits: xBauindustrieverband Niedersachsen-Bremen\/Henning Scheffen, NABU\/Mareike Sonnenschein[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”0px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.logistics-pilot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Afflerbach.png” alt=”Portrait of Bernd Afflerbach, President of the Construction Industry Association of Lower Saxony and Bremen” title_text=”Portrait of Bernd Afflerbach, President of the Construction Industry Association of Lower Saxony and Bremen” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.27.8″ custom_margin_tablet=”” custom_margin_phone=”25px||||false|false” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|phone” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.8″ header_3_text_color=”#002e5b” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin_tablet=”” custom_margin_phone=”||40px||false|false” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|phone” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
Bernd Afflerbach, <\/strong>President of the Construction Industry Association of Lower Saxony-Bremen[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.8″ hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]LOGISTICS PILOT: The German government is planning far-reaching changes concerning legal action taken by associations, especially in terms of environmental and construction laws. Is this a good idea to be able to speed up infrastructure projects? LOGISTICS PILOT: What are the arguments for restricting the right of associations to take legal action? Professor Holger Buschmann, <\/strong>NABU Chairman Lower Saxony[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.8″ custom_margin=”||||false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]LOGISTICS PILOT: And what are the arguments against it? LOGISTICS PILOT: What are the alternatives to speed up the slow pace of infrastructure development in Germany? The wish for quicker planning and approval processes seems to be at odds with the protection of environmental, nature and consumer rights in debates in terms of reforming the right of associations to take legal action. Bernd Afflerbach, President of the Construction Industry Association of Lower Saxony-Bremen, and Professor Holger Buschmann, Chairman of NABU Lower Saxony, put forward their respective arguments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":72066,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[297],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-point-of-view-en"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nAFFLERBACH: <\/strong>Yes. The country is facing massive challenges: dilapidated bridges, overloaded railways and waterways that need to be cleaned up are hampered by everlasting and complex approval processes. The problem is becoming ever more acute, due to the geopolitical situation and the future requirements facing the German armed forces and its European partners. It is important that the originally envisaged possibilities for taking legal action in respect of the investments urgently needed in our infrastructure move forward more quickly, and that the German government\u2019s Infrastructure Future Act is not impeded by an excessive number of legal challenges. Nobody has the impression that too little legal action has taken place in Germany in the past \u2013 certainly not the courts.
BUSCHMANN: <\/strong>No, that is certainly not a good idea. If environmental law still exists on paper but can hardly ever be effectively enforced, it is society as a whole that will ultimately bear the consequences. Destroyed moors, sealed earth surfaces, polluted rivers and lakes, and the loss of protected species will cause enormous problems in the long run. Short-term economic interests must not be allowed to be used to undermine government legislation. After all, nature conservation is confronted by significantly more powerful lobbying interests. As far as I\u2019m concerned, it will be an act of irresponsibility if the right of associations to take legal action is curtailed even further.<\/p>\n
\nAFFLERBACH: <\/strong>Nowadays, the time factor is more critical than ever in establishing a modern and efficient infrastructure. We need to ask ourselves the question as to whether yesterday\u2019s regulations can be applied to the challenges facing us now. Even the population no longer accepts that there are years of delays in legal proceedings following a ruling. It is not just a matter of setting limits for associations taking legal action but rather refocusing on the original purpose of species protection law \u2013 namely, the protection of species, not individual specimens. It is astonishing that so many rare species are discovered during so many major construction projects. You can\u2019t help but think that these are more frequently classified as \u201crare\u201d than they really are. If environmental organisations consider that \u201cenvironmental democracy\u201d is under pressure, you must also accept, on the other hand, that lengthy lawsuits and construction delays have put the reputation of democracy under just as much pressure. This is even more the case where projects are interrupted which serve public welfare.
BUSCHMANN: <\/strong>Not at all. The right of associations to take legal action is not an obstacle but rather an important tool for democratic participation. Environmental laws must be adhered to and capable of being verified. Those who curtail these controls are not reducing bureaucracy but weakening the rule of law. I consider this to be the completely wrong way to go.[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ module_class=”dtb-sticky” _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_sidebar area=”et_pb_widget_area_7″ show_border=”off” admin_label=”Werbung Startseite \/ Artikel” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_sidebar][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ prev_background_color=”#ffffff” _builder_version=”4.23.1″ background_enable_color=”off” use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_stops=”rgba(0,58,124,0.13) 0%|#ffffff 100%” background_color_gradient_start=”rgba(0,58,124,0.13)” background_color_gradient_end=”#ffffff” custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” top_divider_style=”waves2″ top_divider_height=”55px” top_divider_flip=”horizontal” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ custom_padding=”114px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.logistics-pilot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Buschmann.png” alt=”Portrait of Professor Holger Buschmann, the regional chairman of NABU Lower Saxony” title_text=”Portrait of Professor Holger Buschmann, the regional chairman of NABU Lower Saxony” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.27.8″ custom_margin=”-50px||||false|false” custom_margin_tablet=”” custom_margin_phone=”25px||||false|false” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|phone” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.8″ header_3_text_color=”#002e5b” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin_tablet=”” custom_margin_phone=”||40px||false|false” custom_margin_last_edited=”on|phone” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n\u201eThose who curtail these controls are not reducing bureaucracy but weakening the rule of law.\u201c<\/h3>\n
\nAFFLERBACH: <\/strong>The construction industry takes the debates seriously and does not simply turn a blind eye to legitimate arguments against it. Assessments from environmental organisations deserve objective discussion. An overly broad restriction on the right to sue \u2013 one that would not hold up before European courts \u2013 cannot be in anyone’s interest. After all, this ultimately creates more legal uncertainty than it resolves.
BUSCHMANN: <\/strong>There\u2019s a lot to be said against it. Nature and the environment cannot take legal action in their own right. That\u2019s the whole reason for associations having the right to take entities to court. In a few instances, recognised nature conservation organisations may have checks carried out to determine whether applicable environmental legislation has been adhered to. This is often where damage has occurred to common commodities, i.e. ground, water or protected areas, where an individual would not be able to take action per se. If this possibility were to be restricted, the risk increases that environmental destruction will gain further momentum. Where major infrastructural projects are involved, we are talking about significant interventions, vast sums of public money, and often irreparable environmental damage. Legal certainty is not achieved by cutting off legal remedies. It is created by means of clean processes, professional diligence, and the early involvement of recognised associations.<\/p>\n
\nAFFLERBACH: <\/strong>After many wasted years, we now need fast and determined action. This includes reliable financing cycles as well as the special fund set up by the government to be used to fund necessary projects and not merely go to plugging budget gaps. At the same time, we politicians must think more in macro terms rather than in micro measures. Awarding contracts must be speeded up. Modern ways of awarding contracts, such as functional tenders or partnership models, are suitable for this, so that the expertise of construction companies are better integrated into the construction process. Finally, the opportunities provided by public procurement law must also be fully utilised. Centralised procurement departments at a local authority level would also simplify things. Unfortunately, time is of essence, and political patchwork is no longer the order of the day.
BUSCHMANN: <\/strong>We would be a great deal closer to our goal if planning were clear, digital and transparent \u2013 right from the beginning. Many of the delays are caused by missing documentation, planning errors, a lack of staff and local authorities under too much pressure. As far as we are concerned, local authorities need more expertise, both in terms of staff know-how and the technology to hand as well as clear responsibilities and decision-making powers. The needs of the environment must be taken into account at an early stage and not when conflicts have already arisen. Those who plan properly, take public participation seriously, and do not treat nature conservation as a tiresome obstacle can avoid the need for rectification work, construction halts and a loss of trust. This makes infrastructure expansion faster and, at the same time, more compatible with nature (bre)<\/em>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ module_class=”dtb-sticky” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"