Germany typically relies heavily on Russian gas to heat homes, but with supply disruptions and energy use already above the average for the year, the government could be forced to impose rationing. The country has ushered in a chilly autumn this week, and people are being urged to switch off or turn off gas heaters despite the drop in temperatures. The energy regulator has warned that higher-than-average gas consumption over the year means Germany could be forced into rationing amid tight supplies from Russia.
Of course, the German government is mainly to blame – an attempt at stable cooperation with such an unstable partner as Russia was bound to fail. Increasing industrial use of gas was partially obscured by investments in renewable energy. And while the latter was a much-needed initiative, it was joined by another that can only elicit an exclamation of surprise, if not despair – the extinction of operating, fully functional, low-carbon nuclear power plants.
Back in 1976, West Germany’s Forecast regarding energy sources painted a very different picture, as you can see on the depiction on the right. Unfortunately, later policy was driven by irrational fear built on the Chernobyl and Fukushima tragedies. These terrible accidents, although horrific and sad, are nothing when compared to the health and climate impacts of fossil fuels power plants.
This is why on 25 July 2022, 19 German university professors were first to sign a “Stuttgart Declaration”, calling for the immediate abolition of the German nuclear phase-out. It must be done as soon as possible, not only due to the problems with Russian gas. It must be done because nuclear power plants are a low-carbon and sustainable source of the energy, according to the IPCC and the EU classification.
You actually can help a lot here, by signing the petition yourself. We need 50000 votes soon, so fight the climate change by following the instructions listed by RePlanet below!
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