Meeting Global Challenges German-U.S. Innovation Policy: Summary of a Symposium (2012) / Chapter Skim
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Roundtable: Energy Change: What Are the Consequences for the German and U.S. Innovation Systems?
Roundtable: Energy Change: What Are the Consequences for the German and U.S. Innovation Systems?
Pages 165-173
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From page 165... ...
Chair: Tim Stuchtey Director, Brandenburgisches Institut für Gessellschaft und Sicherheit Seth Winnick, Counselor for Economic Affairs, Embassy of the United States Sylvia Kotting-Uhl, Green Party; Member, Committee for Education, Research, and Technology Assessment Albert Rupprecht (CSU) Committee for Education, Research, and Technology Ernst Dieter Rossman, Social Democratic Party, Schleswig-Holstein (SPD)
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From page 166... ...
In terms of energy efficiency and controlling emissions, he continued, Germany has relied on market-based mechanisms, especially the feed-in tariff system to promote solar energy, and the aggressive use of tax policy and gasoline taxes to incentivize efficiency. "I find it ironic that the United States, which believes in market forces above all else and opposes regulation, uses regulatory tools for energy efficiency and emissions." For example, he said, the mandated corporate average fuel economy (CAFÉ)
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From page 167... ...
" Mrs. Kotting-Uhl said that the trend away from nuclear power was at least a decade old, and that the events in Fukushima had only strengthened the Greens' belief that "the nuclear phase-out was, and remains, the correct path." She said that because she is "primarily an environmental and energy politician," for her the "biggest task before civilized and highly industrialized societies is to stop climate change.
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From page 168... ...
If we hadn't had, during those times, institutions such the Federal Bank and EZB to monitor financial trends with a systemic overall view, the financial system would have collapsed altogether." Currently, he said, Germany is trying to resolve "the great world question of climate change and energy by saying ‘Yes' to this type of energy -- yes to wind energy, no to nuclear energy, yes to biodiesel, and so on. But only by having a systemic approach will we move forward." He concluded that, on the whole, "Germany is very well positioned in the areas of research and innovation." ERNST DIETER ROSSMAN Mr.
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From page 169... ...
The Social Democratic Party, he said, preferred to support a broad portfolio of fundamental research "because we believe we should not exclude insights that can become important in a more distant future." Mr. Stuchtey asked the speakers whether Germany should continue to do nuclear research in order to improve the safety of nuclear waste repositories, and whether such work would provide careers for young people in nuclear science.
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From page 170... ...
Should we use gas from Russia, or nuclear power from France? Germany currently had nine nuclear power plants, she said, along with orders and international contracts.
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From page 171... ...
If you fear such dependencies, the answer lies in renewable energy and decentralized, preferably regional energy production and supply." Mr. Winnick commented that when a field is seen as "closed, in decline, or otherwise off limits, people don't go into it." He said that despite Germany's great technical capabilities in the nuclear sector, "it's hard to imagine a student who starts university next year deciding to go into nuclear engineering." In the same way, he said, the United States has had the benefit of European researchers in agricultural biotech moving abroad as the field gradually weakens in Europe.
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From page 172... ...
We should be reassured that Germany exercises strict control over the use of radioactive materials, and that its use is limited to a few fields, including travel, research, and healthcare." Mr. Winnick said that the United States and Germany would have to deal with such problems in their own local ways, and that the partnership in trade would continue.
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From page 173... ...
He said his constituency lives near the border of the Czech Republic and its nuclear plants, and if Germany switches off its power plants, his people will still live closer to the Czech plants than to the plants in Bavaria. "On what grounds can I can argue for this phaseout in terms of safety?
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