Environmental activists marched through Berlin to protest Germany’s use of coal, even though the country has already spent a fortune to end its reliance on coal-generated electricity.
Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Berlin’s government district on Sunday to demand Germany quit using coal as a resource for energy production. Numerous activists marched with balloons that read “Stop Coal” and “Save Climate” in German, according to an Associated Press report. The protests come before Germany’s coal exit commission is due to hold its first meeting next week.
However, the German government hasn’t been lagging in its attempt to transition away from fossil fuels. Europe’s largest economy has — so far — spent an estimated $200 billion on an initiative to prop up its renewable energy sector.
Through a sweeping green energy program called “Energiewende,” Germany has spent billions over the past 20 years to transition toward renewable energy and away from fossil fuels, becoming a world leader in wind energy use.
The overall goal of Energiewende is to slash Germany’s pollution rate by closing down coal and nuclear plants in favor of wind, solar and biofuel energy sources.
The initiative has come at great expense to the average German, who has paid an estimated $2,500 to fund these programs.
Such a major transition to wind and solar has not come without its downfalls. Due to the unreliability of renewable technology — turbines can only generate power when the wind is blowing, and solar panels can only work when the sun is shining — Germany’s power grid has become more susceptible to fluctuations in power generation.
An incoming shortfall of wind and an expected heat wave may hit German ratepayers with skyrocketing utility costs.
Despite the enormous investments in renewables, Germany announced on June 18 that it would miss its carbon reduction targets.
Read more at Daily Caller
Look at what has happened to Germany. Totally neutered.
The article omitted that Germany is committed to ending its use of coal by the end of this year, and that Germany currently gets 40% of its energy for coal. There is no replacement technology that could be developed that fast. An attempt to use wind and solar would be even worse because those have already failed Germany. The only way to end the use of coal by the end of this year would be to achieve one of the goals of the anthropological climate change movement, de-industrialization. It is my guess that there would also have to be planned rolling blackouts of homes.
From the article, “slash Germany’s pollution rate by closing down coal and nuclear plants in favor of wind, solar and biofuel energy sources.” How in the world is nuclear plants pollution? They emit no green house gasses. In addition, if Germany has modern coal power plants, they only emit carbon dioxide, which is not a pollutant.
So they keep protesting against something that is already being phased out.
Maybe the German Greenies don’t keep up with the status of the energy costs and security in their country.
Even in Germany they have Useful Idiots who demand a end to coal then wonder who they have a pay a high electric bill shows they can be easley duped by some snake oil salesman like Al Bore,Leonardo DiCaprio,Bill Nye,James Hansen or Laurie David
And Justin Trudeau plus his climate barbie.