by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
In 2011 Germany finally saw their renewable energy production top that of almost all other sources of energy.
The country produced more energy from renewable sources than from nuclear, hard-coal or gas-fired plants this year after boosting investments in projects from wind to biomass.
The only other energy generation source greater than the renewable energy mix was lignite-fired power, which is so-called “soft” coal. Lignite, unfortunately, is also the dirtiest coal around and thus the causal agent of serious sulfur pollution.
According to a report from German utility BDEW, renewable energy accounted for 20 percent of the country's total energy output, up from 16.4 percent last year. Lignite-fired output produced 24.6 percent of the electricity.
Nuclear power sank to 17.4 percent from 22.4 percent after Chancellor Angela Merkel had the country’s eight oldest reactors closed up in March in the wake of the
Fukushima crisis in Japan. Germany plans to move away from nuclear energy completely by 2022.
Germany, a very highly industrialized country with lots of heavy industry still to this day is able to switch over to renewable energy in this way but according to British government experts and others (experts, my backside) it is not possible to have the UK run on renewables.
The UK is the biggest producer of large scale wind energy and is seriously also getting down to wave energy, etc., and in many aspects is one of the best placed countries for large scale off shore wind energy production but, well, the government advisors say it cannot be done. We must have, they say, new nuclear power stations.
Who is running this country, I wonder. The fossil fuel and nuclear industry, methinks. Time for a change?!?!!
© 2011
