Germany and nuclear power — a love-hate relationship
Nuclear power has been celebrated, condemned, and banned in Germany. As energy imports from Russia came to an end, many began calling for it to make a comeback. Here's a look at the history of a love-hate relationship.
It all began with an 'egg'
Germany's first nuclear reactor went online in October 1957 in Garching near Munich. Given its shape, it was nicknamed the "atomic egg" and belonged to Munich's Technical University. It was a landmark in nuclear research and a symbol of a new beginning after WWII. In 1961, Germany began to produce energy for civilian use. Atomic energy was seen as safe and secure.
The pushback begins
In the 1970s, opponents of nuclear energy questioned just how clean nuclear power was, seeing as there is no safe storage for spent fuel rods. Thousands of protesters clashed with police during a demonstration against the nuclear power plant Brokdorf, in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein. "Nuclear energy? No thanks," became the rallying cry for German environmentalists.
'Nuclear energy? No thanks'
The danger of nuclear power soon became reality. On March 28, 1979, the plant at Three Mile Island, in the US state of Pennsylvania, had a serious accident. And on April 26, 1986, a reactor at the plant near Chernobyl, in Soviet Ukraine, exploded — causing an unprecedented nuclear disaster. A radioactive cloud spread across Europe. It was a watershed moment for Germany, with rotests gaining steam.
Birth of a new party
In 1980, a new party was founded in West Germany: the Greens. Their members were a mix of left-wingers, peaceniks, environmentalists — and a key contingency, nuclear opponents. The party made entered Bundestag, the German parliament, in 1983. Meanwhile, the Chernobyl accident prompted the creation of an environment ministry in Germany.
Wackersdorf: Tragedy and triumph
The Bavarian town of Wackersdorf was set to get a reprocessing plant for spent nuclear fuel rods, but riots broke out in protest. A number of demonstrators and civil service workers were killed, and hundreds more people were injured. Construction was halted in 1989. The German environmental movement claimed its first major victory — muted by the tragedy of lost lives.
Gorleben: Radioactive waste in a salt mine
Meanwhile up north, the town of Gorleben — in the state of Lower Saxony — became a symbol of the fight against nuclear waste. The salt dome there was picked as an interim storage facility for nuclear waste. But already in 1977, a large-scale study revealed that groundwater was seeping in, corroding the barrels holding the waste. This of course posed a major risk of radioactive contamination.
SPD-Green exit plans
Germany's exit from nuclear power has been marked by flip-flops. The center-left coalition of Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens under Chancellor Gerhard Schröder intended the phaseout of nuclear energy in an agreement with big energy companies in 2001. An individual lifespan was determined for all 19 German nuclear power plants, requiring the last to be shut down by 2021.
Rolling back — then rolling back the rollback
In 2010, the center-right government under Chancellor Angela Merkel revoked the deal and decided to extend the operating lives of Germany's nuclear power plants. But following the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima plant in Japan in 2011, Merkel abruptly announced the end to Germany's atomic era. In July 2011, the Bundestag voted to shut down all nuclear reactors by December 31, 2022.
Celebrating the end of nuclear energy in Germany
After years of especially intense protest, activists in the German towns of Grohnde, Gundremmingen and Brokdorf celebrated when the power plants there were switched off at the end of 2021. But the search for a safe waste repository continues. The nationwide location for a geologically suitable safe site for high-level radioactive waste is to be determined by 2031.
Should we stay or should we go?
In response to energy shortages due to the war in Ukraine, calls became louder to extend the lifespan of Germany's remaining three nuclear power plants. Green Party Economy Minister Robert Habeck (right) reluctantly agreed to put two of them on standby until mid-April. But FDP Finance Minister Christian Lindner advocated extending all remaining power stations' lifespan well into 2024.
The chancellor decrees an extension
The dispute between the FDP and the Greens turned into a crucial test for the German governing coalition, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in the end making use of his directives authority. In a letter to the finance, economy and environment ministries, he communicated his decision: The three remaining nuclear power plants are to continue operating until April 15, 2023. Parliament may amend the law.
Phase-out completed... or is it?
When the last three reactors were switched off on April 15, 2023, reactions were mixed. Defenders of nuclear energy argue that it could help Germany meet its goal of carbon neutrality by 2045. And two-thirds of Germans surveyed favored extending the lifespan of nuclear reactors. So Bavaria's Premier Markus Söder vowed to seek a way to continue operating the Isar 2 power station.