Climate activists in Berlin have set their sights on SUV drivers’ tyres as part of a new protest method targeting wealthy neighbourhoods in the city.

Climate activists target SUV cars in Berlin

According to German police, around 50 complaints were filed on January 29 after a swathe of SUV drivers found that their car tyres had been flattened.

Targeting the wealthy Wansee, Schlachtensee and Nikolassee neighbourhoods in the southwest of the city, the protestors had left a note explaining their actions and calling themselves Reifen platt for Future (flat tyres for future).

In their note, the group argued that politicians enforce few limits on wealthy car owners: “While you are allowed to exhaust as must CO2 into the air as you like, increasingly extreme weather threatens to dispossess millions of people.” 

“Olaf Scholz has dubbed himself as the “climate chancellor” but has done little to initiate a Verkehrswende (traffic revolution) away from the car,” the note urged.

Why are SUVs so bad for the environment?

The protest tactic is already common among climate activists in Britain and other countries, and one that is popping up more in Berlin.

Climate groups opposing SUVs often cite how much more dangerous the vehicles are in comparison to standard-sized vehicles, as well as how much more damaging they are to the climate. According to research by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, SUVs are 45 percent more likely to kill someone if they are knocked over.

When it comes to the climate the facts aren’t so forgiving either. For some perspective, China, the United States, India, Russia, Japan and Germany are six countries which produce the most CO2 in the world. If SUV cars were a country, they would be the seventh-worst in the world for CO2 emissions.

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