Abstract |
Sustainability by using regenerative sources is a longterm political goal, the reasons are the finite fossil resources
and the avoidance of toxic emissions and waste. Of the natural energy sources, wind energy is considered in Europe
to offer best promise for contributing in the coming decades a substantial portion of the electrical supply. It is discussed, how the environment-oriented policy in Germany of feeding with priority large quantities of subsidized wind power into the supply affects the stability of the grid and whether it can substitute the dependance on fossil and nuclear fuels. Generation of storable secondary energy carriers such as hydrogen for decoupling the fluctuating supply and demand may be a preferable alternative. The possibility of processing the CO2 - emissions
of coal power stations with regenerative hydrogen, similar to natural photosynthesis, is briefly discussed. |