No to nuclear power plants – 71% of Germans want to continue using nuclear power

After the disaster at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan, the German government led by CDU chancellor Angela Merkel promised a phase-out of nuclear power. The exit was decided in June 2011 by a large majority in the German Bundestag. In addition to the then governing parties CDU, CSU and FDP, the SPD and Greens also voted in favour, only the left voted against. The last three reactors were due to be shut down by the end of 2022, but the traffic light government, impressed by the energy crisis caused by Russia’s offensive war in Ukraine, agreed to extend its life to winter.

In addition to the co-governing FDP, the opposition parties of the Union in particular are now pushing for a further extension of the deadline. They also receive support from climate icon Greta Thunberg. She told German media last fall that it was worse to shut down nuclear plants “when coal is the alternative”. Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD and the Greens, on the other hand, are sticking to the nuclear exit. However, the vast majority of the population (71%) wants to continue using nuclear energy, reports the newspaper “Bild”, citing a survey by the CDU-affiliated Konrad-Adenauer-Stichting (KAS).

Renewable energy suddenly no longer popular?
As a result of the exit decision, there was a huge expansion of renewable energy, especially wind energy, in Germany. However, the production of renewable energy sources fluctuates strongly and is difficult to reconcile with demand. Critics of the nuclear phase-out argue that this has led to an increase in electricity production from gas and coal-fired power plants, which is detrimental to the climate. Several European countries are striving to expand nuclear energy.