Germany is one of the greatest contradictions in the European climate debate: it is enthusiastic about “net-zero,” rejects nuclear power, the Greens are poised to enter the government and control some powerful ministries, and yet it continues to mine and burn coal on an unprecedented scale in Western Europe. Quite filthy coal, to be honest.
The massive Garzweiler open-cast coal mine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia continues to spread; it is already one of the deepest and widest man-made holes in Europe, having already consumed 20 communities that had the misfortune of being built a few meters above a coal seam.
Until the mine finishes production in 2038, six more communities are scheduled to be demolished unless the Green Party comes to power (which is a possibility).
One of these is Kuckham, a community that has been inhabited since the eleventh century but will soon disappear. We spoke with activists whose Kuckham ancestry dates back to the seventeenth century; they will not give up without a struggle.
One of the greatest ironies of the situation is that the empty homes in Kuckham, purchased by RWE – the energy corporation that operates the Garzweiler mine – are suddenly inhabited by some of Europe’s first climate refugees.
The epicenter of one of the deadliest floods in German history was less than an hour’s drive from Kuckham.
After days of apocalyptic rain, medieval settlements like Ahrweiler were swamped by wild rivers of water that raced down the Ahr valley. These were not gently rising waters, but rather floods that filled the streets to a height of almost two meters within minutes. Over 200 people perished.
Many thousands of people will be unable to return to their houses until Ahrweiler and other communities in the valley are restored and reconstructed, which will take years. German climate change victims are currently being kept in the very facilities that are suspected to be causing climate change.
As previously said, this is one of the greatest inconsistencies.
