Tag: Germany

Steinfurt District, Germany

Steinfurt District, Germany

  • Target: 100% climate protection and 100% renewable energy by 2050.
  • Status: In progress
  • RES: Wind power, solar power and biomass energy.
  • Implementation: The county of Steinfurt in Germany has implemented a 100% Climate Protection masterplan or  “Masterplan 100% Klimaschutz” with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas-emission by 95% until 2050 by reducing the regional power demand by 50% and covering the remaining demand by renewable energy (reference year 1990). To achieve this target, Steinfurt is cooperating with many local and regional actors including: climate activists from the 24 municipalities in the district of Steinfurt, local citizens, regional politicians, regional power companies, companies from the regional business network “Unternehmernetzwerk energieland2050”, experts from the University of Applied Sciences in Münster, external experts for  climate protection, regional tourist promotion offices and other associations. The first phase of the masterplan has concluded, with an analysis of the actual energy data and future energy scenarios. There it was shown that wind power stations, solar or biomass power systems can produce sufficient renewable energy by 2050. Furthermore, the potential of power production will be higher than the predicted power demand in 2050. To achieve sustainable mobility however will require alternative vehicle options like e-mobility, hybrid- or hydrogen-drive.
  • Population: 444,409 (2016)
  • Area: 1,792.097 km2(691.933 sq mi)
  • Link: Amt für Klimaschutz und Nachhaltigkeit
Steinfurt District, Germany

Traunstein District, Germany

Traunsee, Traunstein, Germany

  • Target: 100% renewable energy
  • Status: In progress
  • RES: Hydropower, solar power and biomass energy.
  • Implementation: In 2007, the Traunstein district in the state of Bayern, Germany set the 100% target but it was only formally confirmed by the local government years later in 2013. The time taken was due to the many studies undertaken in the preceding years to examine the renewable energy potential of the region. These studies were conducted by several research institutes and a university. Today the total energy demand in the district is around 660 MWh without industry, and 1005 MWh with industry. In 2013, approximately 490 MWh was already produced from renewable energy sources. Hydropower provides around 146 GWh of this. In recent years, biomass has grown particularly rapidly and now supplies over 140 MWh. Solar power has also expanded significantly, from 18 MWh at the end of 2005 to 68 MWh in 2013. Today the district is continuing to expand its RE portfolio to achieve its long-term target. The district has chosen a community participatory approach to encourage further action. “Sonnenkreis Traunstein” for example was created as a regional network that makes use of local experience and knowledge to increase renewable energy implementation, and to encourage more efforts in energy saving and energy efficiency.
  • Population: 176,290 (2017)
  • Area: 1,533.92 km2 (592.25 sq mi)
  • Link: (In German) https://www.traunsteiner-tagblatt.de/region/landkreis-traunstein_artikel,-667-prozent-des-strombedarfs-in-eigenleistung-erbracht-_arid,119800.html
Traunsee, Traunstein, Germany

Trier (Region), Germany

Trier, Germany

  • Target: Transition from an energy-importing to an energy-exporting region
  • Status: In progress - To date, the RES-plants in the region supplies more than 60 % of the regional electricity demand, thereby saving more than 1.2 Mio. tonnes of CO2.
  • RES: Solar, wind, hydro and biomass.
  • Implementation: In 2011, the region of Trier in Germany was designated as a national "100 RES-Region" and a "Renewable Energy Sources (RES) Region of Competence". The region has accumulated more than 15 years of experience in developing a sustainable regional energy system that focuses equally on energy saving, energy efficiency, and the expansion of renewables. The original motivation behind this was to create an economic alternative to nuclear power and to reduce the dependence from oil, gas and coal. Today, the main goal is to transition from an energy-importing region to an energy-exporting region.  Based on energy studies carried out in 2001 and 2010, the region has adopted a development concept called the ‘Future Strategy Region Trier 2025’, which contains major actions addressing key themes such as energy generation and savings, reduction of GHGs and creating/maintaining added values in the regional energy sector. From 2010, ‘Energy Agency Region Trier’ began cooperating with the ‘Regional Planning Association’ to initiate projects, to consult, inform and connect relevant actors on energy themes – ranging from citizens and communities to architects, planners, energy consultants and other businesses. In 2012 a regional public discourse was launched in order to anchor the energy transition in the region through many workshops, events and internet portals.
  • Population: 110,013 (2017)
  • Area: 117.13 km2 (45.22 sq mi)
  • Link: (In German) https://www.trier.de/umwelt-verkehr/energie-klima/
Trier, Germany

Wangen im Allgäu, Germany

Wangen im Allgäu, Germany

  • Target: 100% energy supply for electricity (by 2020) and heating (by 2030)
  • Status: In progress
  • RES: Solar PV and thermal, biogas, biomass cogeneration, and hydropower.
  • Implementation: Wangen im Allgäu is a historic city in southern Germany. The town currently derives half of its electricity demand from renewable energy sources mostly solar PV (21,121 MWh/year) followed by biogas (15,128 MWh/year) and hydro (9,080 MWh/year).  Currently, approximately 8% of the town heating needs are provided by biomass, heat pumps and solar thermal collectors. Expansion of the wood chips biomass facility is planned as well as the development of a new CHP plant and new hydro power facilities. The latter would provide much higher RE supplies in the near future. It is envisaged that the town's goal to reach a 100 percent energy supply in both electricity and heating will be realized by upgrading the existing wood-fired power plant and by upgrading the production of electricity power from water power plants operated by the public utility company.
  • Population: 27,109 (2017)
  • Area: 101.28 km2(39.10 sq mi)
  • Link: Energieleitbild und Klimaschutzziele der Stadt Wangen im Allgäu
Wangen im Allgäu, Germany

Wildpoldsried, Germany

Wildpoldsried, Germany

  • Target: 100% renewable energy
  • Status: Achieved
  • RES: Wind, solar, small-scale hydro, biomass, biogas, cogeneration and district heating.
  • Implementation: Wildpoldsried is a small village in the district of Oberallgäu in Bavaria in southern Germany. The village has been recognized for its exceptional achievements in renewable energy production and in reducing its carbon footprint. It all began in 1997, when the community of Wildpoldsried began to construct a series of projects that produce renewable energy. The first efforts were wind turbines and biomass digesters for cogeneration of heat and power. In the time since, new work has included a number of energy conservation projects, more wind and biomass use, small hydro plants, photovoltaic panels on private houses, and district heating. Tied to this are ecological flood control and wastewater systems. Today, the impact of measures has resulted in the construction of nine new community buildings, including a school,  and community hall, complete with solar panels. There are three companies operating four biogas digesters. There are nine windmills. One hundred and ninety private households are equipped with solar, which pays them dividends. The district heating network has 42 connections. There are two small hydro power plants. Wildpoldsried now produces 469%  more energy than it needs and is generating 4.0 million Euro in annual revenue. At the same time, there has been a 65% reduction in the town’s carbon footprint.
  • Population: 2,567 (2017)
  • Area: 21.35 km2 (8.24 sq mi)
  • Link: (In German) https://www.wildpoldsried.de/index.shtml?Energie
Wildpoldsried, Germany

Wolfhagen, Germany

Wolfhagen, Germany

  • Target: 100% RE electricity supply by 2015.
  • Status: Achieved
  • RES: Windpark, a biomass and biogas plant, a small household RE systems.
  • Implementation: Wolfhagen is a small, idyllic German town, located in the Kassel District of the Federal State of Hesse. Its 100% RE achievement was a response to an increasing number of energy mandates and expenditures faced years earlier. By adopting an RE strategy, it was able to eliminate its dependence on fossil fuels and external energy suppliers, and keep revenues within the region which benefit its citizens directly. RE has also helped create many new jobs in the town. An important milestone for the city's energy transition was reached in 2003 when the council decided to buy back the electricity grid. The decision led to the “remunicipalization” of the grid by the municipally owned utility, Stadtwerke Wolfhagen. In 2008, Stadtwerke organized an excursion to a wind farm for representatives of all local political parties and less than four weeks later the sitting council officially adopted the 100% RE target. A broad participatory process was launched by the municipal administration with several stakeholders from the local forestry industry and businesses, as well as with conservationists. In 2012, in keeping with the political commitment to ensure citizens directly benefit from RE investments, the citizen-based energy cooperative BürgerEnergieGenossenschaft Wolfhagen was founded. By that time, the German Renewable Energy Act, the national legal framework, enabled rapid realisation of RE projects. Wolfhagen's RE strategy is centered on Windpark Rödeser Berg and Solarpark Gasterfeld, a biomass and biogas plant owned by local farmers, and many private household production systems. The local citizen energy cooperative holds a 25% share in the municipally owned utility Stadtwerke Wolfhagen. This partnership between cooperative and municipal utility fosters democratization of energy production and fair distribution of benefits. Harmonizing supply with demand remains a key focus in Wolfhagen's RE strategy. The town aims to establish a smart network that links households to the municipal utility which would optimize household devices, for example, at times when a lot of wind and sun energy is transmitted to the grid. It allows Stadtwerke Wolfhagen to send signals to households to start up and take advantage of lower-priced wind and sun-generated electricity. A pilot project of 35 households is underway with the intention of developing an evidence-based business model.
  • Population: 13,121 (2017)
  • Area: 111.95 km2(43.22 sq mi)
  • Link: How a small town reclaimed its grid and sparked a community revolution
Wolfhagen, Germany
  • © Günther Pöpperl