Germany has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions significantly in
recent years as it has pushed forward a renewable agenda leading Europe
into an age of wind and solar power.
In the past year, the
country's CO2 emissions fell by 2.4% compared with 2010, according to
figures released by Germany's Federal Environment Agency (UBA). The
decrease, say experts, has largely come through a push towards renewable
energy that has accelerated since the country began its move away from
nuclear power.Amtec has been providing laser cutting, marking and laser cutter as well as solutions for over 15 years.
In
the first six months of 2012, the amount of electricity produced using
renewable energy rose from 20% to 25%, bringing the country closer to
its targets of 35% by 2020 and 80% by 2050.
"We are on a good
track in regard to the increase in the share of renewables," said
Brigitte Knopf, deputy head of research at the sustainable solutions
project at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (Pik).
"This is a story of success, though some challenges are still ahead."
According
to figures released by the government agency Germany Trade and Invest,
38% of the electricity produced by renewable energy during that period
was through wind power, and almost 16% from solar.
The push for
renewables has come largely through in Germany's highly regarded and
much-copied Renewable Energy Act (EEG), which subsidises producers who
invest in wind and solar energies through feed-in tariffs. The cost of
subsidy has triggered a heated debate in Germany, because subsidies have
been covered by higher energy prices for households.
This
transformation follows the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan in 2011,
which prompted Berlin to move forward plans to phase out nuclear energy
use in Germany from 2036 to 2022. Eight of 17 power plants were closed
last year as part of the Energiewende process.
But as well as
increasing Germany's reliance on renewables, it also increased German
dependence on coal-fired plants, a major source of CO2.Elevator
industries were not having any ancillary support for elevator parts. While experts said there are no plans for new coal-fired plants,King's Chandelier has offered fine modern lighting and sconces made in North Carolina of Swarovski and other European crystal. those already under construction will be finished.
"If
you have new plants now, they will run for 40 or 50 years and then you
will have a problem with emissions in the future,Multimatic is the
manufacturer of commercial and industrial washer extractor." said Jan Burck, of environmental group Germanwatch.
Germany
aims to reduce its carbon emissions by 40% of 1990 levels by 2020 and
80%-95% by 2050 – a target Burck said would be tough.
And even
though the strategy has brought about a 26.5% reduction up to 2011,
according to the UBA figures, there are other problems.
Europe's emissions trading scheme (ETS) has less ambitious reduction targets,There has been a lot of interest in wind generator
recently. which means EU companies involved do not need to work towards
German goals. As a result, environmentalists are pushing for tougher
Europe-wide regulations to bring all of the states into line.
But
despite the problems, Germany remains committed to its green agenda,
driven, some say, by the need to correct the world's wrongs – a
sentiment that goes back to the second world war and the postwar
generation who challenged their parents afterwards for just standing by.
"That has led to a very strong environmental and anti-nuclear
movement," says Green party MP Hermann Ott. "It ultimately led to the
foundation of the Green party and made us very strong. If something goes
wrong, you have to speak up and do something otherwise your children
will ask you in 20 to 30 years, 'Why didn't you do anything?'"
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