Thursday marks Earth Overshoot Day, the date when humanity is estimated to have used up the planet’s renewable resources for the year. For Luxembourg, however, this milestone was reached far earlier, on 17 February, placing the Grand Duchy second only to Qatar in the global ranking of countries that consume their resources the fastest.
To mark Earth Overshoot Day, environmental organisations Votum Klima and Seniors for Climate rallied at Findel airport on Thursday morning. Around a dozen activists gathered at the entrance, holding a specially designed departure board-style sign. Léonard Andersen from the Centre for Ecological Learning Luxembourg (CELL) explained that the symbolism behind the departure board shows flights that are cancelled, ongoing, or delayed. Delayed are things like the Paris Agreement, cancelled are the 1.5°C targets, and ongoing is climate change itself.
The groups, including CELL, ASTM, and Greenpeace, used the action to criticise plans to expand Findel airport, arguing that such growth directly contradicts Luxembourg’s stated climate goals. Instead of extending the airport’s capacity, they advocate for further investment in high-speed rail connections.
Andersen notes that Luxembourg’s top 10 flight destinations are mostly within 800km. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this is precisely where rail can compete with aviation to take up more of the market share. He argues that the vision for 2050 or even 2100 should be a European high-speed rail system connecting major capitals and opening up Luxembourg, offering fast routes to Brussels, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, and beyond.
Votum Klima’s representatives stressed that their message is not anti-progress, but a challenge to the prevailing model of material growth in a country with consumption levels far above the global average. They placed responsibility primarily on policymakers, not individuals, arguing that political choices shape the conditions in which people consume and travel.
Findel airport currently has space for around 27 planes on its tarmac. Should the planned expansion go ahead, the facility would be able to accommodate twice as many aircraft at once.
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