Return of the patio heaters?
Germany | Publicans tend to regard the end of summer with a certain wistfulness. But the idea of a cold and wet autumn under coronavirus restrictions is a real horror scenario for them. Is this the moment of the patio heater?
Patio heaters, also called umbrella or mushroom heaters, are the bête noire of climate savers. Because they often run on gas, they have been likened to coal-fired power stations on wheels, spewing forth CO2 like there is no tomorrow. Pointing to their negative impact on the environment, they were outlawed for use in hospitality venues about ten years ago.
The current debate over re-admitting them is putting Germany’s Green Party into a moral quandary: where in power, Greens have relentlessly campaigned for supporting the ailing hospitality industry. But to revoke the ban on patio heaters, many Greens consider a step too far.
Yes, no, may-be
The controversy rages most loudly in Berlin. The Senator for Economics, Ramona Pop, a Green politician, said she may grudgingly re-allow them, provided they run on clean power and their use is compensated for by a Carless Sunday.
In Hamburg, which is run by a red-red-green coalition, the Deputy Mayor, Katharina Fegebank, a Green, had to defend her decision to permit those “god-awful” things “just this once” against her party’s youth wing, which wants to uphold the ban.
It is up to local councils to permit the use of patio heaters. They tend to be split on the issue. But with autumn approaching, they will need to make up their minds quickly.
