BERLIN—A German court on Friday rejected a farmer’s bid to force automaker Volkswagen to end the sale of vehicles with combustion engines by 2030.
In the case at the state court in the western town of Detmold, farmer Ulf Allhoff-Cramer said that drier soil and heavier rains because of climate change are harming his fields, cattle, and commercial forests.
He argued that Volkswagen is partly to blame for that, as the mass production of vehicles running on gasoline contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere.
The court ruled that the suit was unfounded. It said that it couldn’t establish that the alleged damage to the plaintiff’s property, health, and rights could be remedied by the measures he demanded alone….