37 ° - Before us the deluge
The North Frisian island of Pellworm is threatened with extinction. 37 degrees accompanies residents of the island + the associated Hallig Süderoog, who are campaigning to preserve their home. Rising sea levels + more frequent heavy rain events could overload the island's drainage system. What is happening in North Friesland is an example of the challenges of climate change worldwide.
There for eight generations: 22-year-old Sophie wants to take over her parents' organic farm. The family has lived on the Edenswarf in Ostersiel for eight generations. More and more extreme weather conditions with heavy rain, dry summers and storm surges are already costing the family a lot of money. Sophie, her three siblings + parents Jörg and Silke sued the German government in the Berlin Constitutional Court in 2019 for not meeting climate targets. The lawsuit was rejected.
Constitutional complaint filed: Sophie and other young environmental activists filed a constitutional complaint in April 2021. Successful this time. The judges in Karlsruhe ruled: The Climate Protection Act lacked sufficient specifications as to how exactly greenhouse gas emissions are to be reduced from 2031. 37 degrees accompanies the student as she works on her father's farm.
"You can feel climate change in every season," says Ernst August, who as an organic farmer and dike count on Pellworm sees the changes in nature every day. "The sea level is rising + at the same time the low water level is rising." He is therefore very concerned about the island's drainage system. When the sea level rises, the low tide periods shorten. Then the water backs up, the collection basin overflows + the roads and fields are flooded. A solution is urgently needed here.
Land under: The crab fisherman, captain and fishery management master Holger + his wife Nele live with their two children on the Hallig Süderoog. Their tasks include coastal protection, building maintenance and nature conservation. Their house stands on a mound for protection from the tides. When a high storm tide is imminent, they close the shutters, pile sandbags in front of the house and pack food. 10 to 40 times a year, it's "land under the sea" for them. Then their small marshland island is flooded during a strong tide.
And that is by design. The floods deposit sediments on the small island, which grows. The only question is, is it growing faster than the water is rising? To save the Halligen, there are many proposals: Dikes, putting the houses on hydraulic "tables," sand flushing, or simply letting them flood more so they can grow naturally in height. But all these measures are not enough to counter sea level rise.
Broadcasting on 14th of February 2023 at 10.15pm on ZDF
Music: POPVIRUS Library