Germany

17 Pages 4153 Words

ng the Chernobyl' nuclear disaster in 1986, however, massive environmental protests stiffened public resistance to nuclear energy. Further construction of nuclear power facilities was halted for fear of accidents and lawsuits and because of the difficulties of disposing of the radioactive waste. Instead, West Germany embarked on a program of energy savings, including increasing the efficiency of automobile engines and heating plants. Alternative and renewable sources of energy, such as wind, solar, and geothermal energy, have also been developed, but there is little hope that they could ever supply a major part of Germany's huge needs.
Nuclear plants still provide 30.30 percent of the nation's electricity. While many reactors in Germany were shut down, there were 19 plants that continued to function in 2001. The considerable uranium deposits in Saxony and Thuringen, which had been strip-mined and left open to the elements under the East German government, were sealed up. A government-owned company, Wismut GmbH, worked to complete the environm...