The Sustainable Star - Germany

June 2006
Germany has already gone further than anyone else in encouraging renewable energy. By 2050, 50% of its energy could come from renewable sources. But what's the real cost of its energy revolution?

Germany's landmark EEG law forces power stations to buy electricity at above markets rates from anyone using renewable energy to generate it. "It's the beginning of an energy revolution", raves politician Herman Scheer. In the village of Juhnde, residents now produce their own electricity from manure. "We are independent of international oil prices", raves one local. The scheme has been so successful that 30 other villages plan to copy them. But power companies blame the EEG law for Germany's expensive electricity bills and claim it makes some German industries uncompetitive.

Produced by SBS/Dateline
Distributed by Journeyman Pictures

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Germany
• New
• Power
• Sustainable
• energy
• news
• documentary
• current affairs
• journeyman
• journeyman pictures

[keijuhl]

Props to germany for the work on green energy, if everyone would also begin to take their part *a-hem USA* then maybe things will start to make some great green progress.

[adramatictheme]

These sort of self-sustainable communities should be implemented throughout the world.

Now that is progress.

[TheKarlsruheprotest]

10% more renewable energy share every decade that looks promising!

[Lintflas]

@therearnonamesleft

The Germans idea is that all power production should be owned by the people.

Why should anyone pay for energy when he can actually earn money from selling his own energy surplus from the rooftop of his house right into the electricity grid?

This happens right now in Germany, and it works.

[kofferfischii]

Now with less subsidies

[TravelinMan1961]

These People in Jühnde must be in twenty or thirty years all together to be very rich. Because they produce their own energy costs, cheaper, and the value is retained as an investment or savings in the region !

[evergreen1982]

CDU politicians: Talk about subsidies to fossil fuel, Scheer is the only one that brought that out. Fossils are subsidiesd with billions. Billions that could do a lot better things

[therearnonamesleft]

All power productions should be owned by the government... no businesses should be involved.

[ednuttah]

I wonder how long it will be before this great idea of hope and a renewable future is destroyed by a republican USA? 5,10,15 years?