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Bremen court rejects bid to save dyke trees for flood upgrades

A legal battle over Bremen's iconic dyke trees ends in defeat for activists. Now, flood defences take precedence as climate threats escalate.

,   and  Administrator
2 min read
The image shows an old map of the city of Bremen, Germany, with text detailing the city's streets...
The image shows an old map of the city of Bremen, Germany, with text detailing the city's streets and landmarks. It is a detailed map, showing the streets, buildings, and other features of the area, as well as the surrounding area. The map is printed on a paper, giving it a classic look.

Bremen court rejects bid to save dyke trees for flood upgrades

**On March 11, the State Court of Justice rejected a popular initiative 'to protect the plane trees on the Newstead Dyke'. The trees must give way to the construction of a flood protection wall for the so-called city section.**

The Weser bank of the so-called city section, between the railway bridge or Stephan bridge and Piepe, and further along the Little Weser to the Werdersee, is to be extensively upgraded in the next few years to ensure safe flood protection.

Bremen, due to its geographical location on the Weser and its proximity to the North Sea, is strongly affected by climate change. Projections by the IPCC predict not only a significant increase in sea water levels, but also higher and more frequent storm surges.

The upgrade of the city section is intended to mitigate the consequences of climate change for Bremen and to sustainably improve and protect the quality of life of the people living in this area.

Flood protection facilities have absolute priority

However, the planned construction measures have an impact on the tree population on the Newstead Dyke. Expertise had examined the preservation of a row of planes there from various aspects and concluded that this was not possible. Therefore, the Senate had already rejected a popular initiative to protect the trees by resolution in December 2022. Now, on March 11, the State Court of Justice has confirmed that the popular initiative 'to protect the plane trees on the Newstead Dyke' is not admissible.

The court justified the rejection by stating that it is not compatible with existing federal law and that the functional security of flood protection facilities has absolute priority. In the opinion of the judges, the submitted bill for the protection of the planes on the Newstead Dyke violates this functional security. The state of Bremen cannot override federal regulations because it does not have the corresponding legislative competence. The decision of the State Court of Justice is final and cannot be appealed.

'We always find it difficult to fell trees'

On this, Climate Protection Senator Kathrin Moosdorf: 'Secure dykes and thus the safety of tens of thousands of people are my top priority. We always find it difficult to fell trees. We still have to do it on the Newstead Dyke for an important reason: we want the Bremen Neustadt to remain safely protected from floods.

For this - as shown by expert opinions and numerous dyke construction engineers - the planes must give way. It is good that the State Court of Justice has today strongly supported flood protection and that we can redesign the city section in this section in a new and future-proof manner.'

***Stock photo:*** Due to its geographical location on the Weser, Bremen is strongly affected by climate change and the resulting flood risk.

***Image source:*** Adobe Stock / NEWSART

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