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Death in the rotor blade: a swarm of gulls flies past a wind turbine
Photo: Ashley Cooper / Getty Images
It is a dispute between two who are otherwise often on the same side: Nevertheless, a dispute has broken out between the state association for renewable energies in North Rhine-Westphalia (LEE) and the local nature conservation organization Nabu. It's about the expansion of wind energy in the state. The accusation of the Ökoenergie-Verband is that the Nabu NRW is pursuing a blockade strategy in the energy transition. Again and again, the environmentalists in the state filed lawsuits against the construction of new wind farms or intervened with the approval authorities. The Naturschutzbund Deutschland argues with the protection of species and the dwindling habitat of animals and plants.
On Wednesday the LEE, which represents numerous companies in the wind power industry, invited to an unusual demonstration.
In the state capital Düsseldorf, protests were made in front of the state headquarters of the Nabu.
Around a hundred people gathered there to draw attention to themselves with whistles and posters, as the LEE confirmed to SPIEGEL.
The dispute has been smoldering for years, the demonstration is now an escalation of the conflict. According to the Wind Energy Association, Nabu has blocked and slowed down over a hundred wind turbines with more than 500 megawatts of power in North Rhine-Westphalia alone in recent years.
Several thousand tons of climate-damaging CO₂ could have been saved.
The accusation of the wind power producers is aimed specifically against the Nabu in North Rhine-Westphalia. "Even if Nabu NRW likes to play itself as a supporter of the energy transition, this association does not have a sustainable concept for a successful restructuring of our energy supply, which is indispensable for climate protection reasons," a message quoted by LEE NRW chairman Reiner Priggen.
The environmentalists would not adhere to nationwide positions on the expansion of wind energy, which were agreed with the Greens at the end of last year and which are also in the interests of the wind energy operators, so the accusation. Instead, the Nabu regional association has presented its own position paper. In the document of April 2021 it says: "Under no circumstances may a further expansion of wind energy take place in a disorderly manner and weaken the requirements of the applicable species protection law, which must be strictly observed."
The Nabu rejects the allegations.
One is not against the wind energy, so state chairman Heide Naderer at the request of the German press agency.
They want the further expansion of renewable energies.
But aspects of species protection law must also be taken into account.
She regrets that two crises, the species conservation crisis and the climate crisis, are being played off against each other.
In addition, the attacks by the wind energy lobbyists are also guided by monetary interests.
However, in lawsuits, Nabu NRW is not only referring to species protection and is also suing for noise protection or an inadmissible change in the landscape, according to the regional association for renewable energies.
According to a report by WDR, Nabu denies that.
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