Germany: Four cities now run on renewable energy

A city in the north of Germany?s Hessen region has followed the lead of three other cities – Emden, Kassel and Nuernberg ? and switched to a 100% renewable energy sources.

The city of Wolhagen has refused to renew its contract with leading energy companies and has instead chosen to buy its own energy network. ?If you have your own network you are free to decide how to run it? states Martin Ruehl, head of Wolhagen?s public services.

This green city has moved to 100% eco-friendly energy sourced from an Austrian hydroelectric power plant. This nevertheless raises ?delivery costs?, since the energy must still be carried through the networks of the ?old? energy suppliers, who charge for the service.

In order to become delivery- independent and to save the region money the municipality is planning a huge wind park . This is going to be a ?citizens-wind park? which will ensure that the local population accept the wind wheels and turbine.

Villages that are 100% renewable are already a reality in Germany. At present there are approximately a dozen, the most well known being Juende in the lower Saxon region.

In the federal state of Bavaria six administrative districts have declared that they aim to become ?self energised? by 2035. Moreover in the Hesse federal state the SPD party led by Hermann Scheer, minister for the environment and the economy, states that in case of political victory they will transform Hesse in the first German federal state to be run solely on renewable energy.

By 2011 more than 150 municipalities have to renew their energy contract and most of them are planning to become energy independent. This is the one and only way to achieve sustainability in Germany.