After the Fukushima, Japan, nuclear plant was hit by a tsunami in 2011, Germany decided to shut down all their own nuclear power plants by 2022. The plan was to replace nuclear (which supplied 29% of their power) with wind power, but that isn't working out too well despite huge taxpayer funding. Some windmills are actually going to be scrapped.
What is replacing the power from these reductions? Coal. Yes, they are going back to coal, the dirtiest source of power.
"While Germany continues to expand solar and wind power, the government’s decision to phase out nuclear energy means it must now rely heavily on the dirtiest form of coal, lignite, to generate electricity. The result is that after two decades of progress, the country’s CO2 emissions are rising."
photo: theguardian.com
(cont'd tomorrow)
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