In order to make progress with the expansion of wind power in Germany, the federal government wants to be able to overturn laws for minimum distances for wind turbines in the federal states if the goals set by the federal government are not achieved.
A new package of laws from the Ministry of Economics and Climate is intended to promote the expansion of wind energy in Germany and reduce the hurdles to do so. This is reported by the Reuters news agency, citing documents from the ministry. The aim is to accelerate the energy transition and thus reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels. Around two percent of Germany’s area is to be reserved for wind turbines, reports tagesschau.de.
According to Reuters, the draft law provides for the federal states to be subject to binding area targets for the expansion of wind energy and for landscape protection areas to be opened up to wind energy “to an appropriate extent”.
Countries must provide more space for wind turbines
“It is part of a comprehensive regulatory package with the aim of achieving a sustainable and greenhouse gas-neutral energy supply, which is intended to drastically accelerate the expansion of renewable energies and remove all hurdles and obstacles to accelerated expansion,” says Reuters in the “law”.
The distance rules for wind turbines to residential areas should remain in force for the time being. If the federal states do not manage to achieve their area targets by a certain deadline, the federal government should be able to overturn laws on minimum distances for wind turbines. According to tagesschau.de, this would be 1.8 percent by 2032 in Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia; in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania 2.1 percent.
The law also provides for changes in nature conservation: According to this, there should be a nationwide uniform standard for the assessment of species protection and commissions the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation to set up national species protection programs and to ensure their implementation.
Habeck: “You can’t be satisfied with that”
According to Reuters, wind turbine operators must participate in the financing of species protection as part of the programs of the nature conservation agency, the draft law says. There should be detailed regulations for birds of prey, which are endangered by the rotor blades of the wind turbines.
According to Reuters information, the project is to be launched this Wednesday, according to government circles. It is to be approved by the cabinet before the end of this month and then tabled in the Bundestag.
The federal government’s plan to use two percent of the land area for wind power is met with resistance in some countries. To date, less than one percent of the federal territory has been designated for onshore wind power.
Federal Climate Protection Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) has called on the federal states to designate more areas for wind turbines than previously promised. “You can’t be satisfied with that,” said Habeck in an interview with RTL Nachtjournal on Tuesday during his visit to Jordan. The minister was confident that he would bring about changes in nature conservation law and the expansion of wind power by the summer holidays. “It’s all about to be put on track now.” He promised that the 2 percent area target would be enshrined in law as soon as possible. The expansion of wind power should be carried out jointly and in solidarity with the federal states. From 2023 you can “really get started”.
Other sources: “Zeit Online”, RTL
