The cost of electricity for the people of Germany is so high that many of the people can not afford to have it anymore. Germany’s economy is deteriorating, but the environment minister, Peter Altmaier, thinks the only way to help the economy is to increase prices on electricity. Altmaier is afraid that the people of Germany will become dependent on outside sources of energy, so he agreed to make twenty-three coal-fired plants that are under construction now. By doing this Germany is making sure they don’t have to up the prices for electricity and they don’t have to depend on having outside sources of electricity brought into their country.
The actual productivity of their wind power over the last ten years was a very low 16.3 percent. That means that, even though they hoped to get a 30 percent load factor, they were actually getting much less. This happened over the course of ten years because they didn’t account for the fact that the wind does not always blow at the required speed. The worst part about it is that Germany spent billions of Euros on this project and it only contributed to 0.084 percent of their electricity over the last 22 years; not even one-tenth of one percent.
Sources:
Germany’s new “renewable” energy policy
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/may/30/germany-renewable-energy-revolution
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Doing this lab allowed us to interact with classmates and learn a new program. The next time we use the robots we are going to have the chance to have them lift things and record them. I definitely think this is something that other teachers in high schools and middle schools should use to teach a unit like this to their students.