Milestones in the Eradication of FossilFuel Reliance

In our quest to shakethe yoke of fossil fuel

reliance, it appears weare finally making

some headway. Mostnotably, we are making

some great stridesacross the pond in

Europe. From Portugalto Britain, here are

some of the mostsignificant

accomplishments wehave seen in just the

last year:

Portugal Ran on Solely Renewable Energy forFour Days

For a remarkable 107 hours, the entirecountry of Portugal was being supplied power

from solely renewable alternative energyresources. By drawing electricity from solar,wind, and hydropower, the country operated

as normally without polluting theenvironment with toxic carbon emissions.

Most remarkably, perhaps, is that just threeyears ago Portugal was producing half of its

national electricity output fromenvironmentally destructive fossil fuels.

Germany, the World’s Fourth Largest Economy, NearlyPowered its Entire Country from Solar and Wind Power.

Astoundingly so, Germany supplied an immense 87% of its electricity from solarand wind power on May 8th. In fact, due to said alternative energy’s success, theprice of electricity actually plummeted so much that people were making money

by just powering their homes. Although a little confusing, this was able to happenbecause “coal and nuclear plants couldn’t shut down fast enough to respond to

the excess power.”

Britain Overcame its Coal Reliance for the

First Time in Over a Century

From May 9th to May 15th, England’s coalusage actually became nonexistent in

regards to powering electricity.Amazingly, this is the first time this has

ever happened since 1882 when the countryopened its first ever public power station.

By providing power for nearly a weekwithout the use of coal, England has

demonstrated its ability to overcome, atleast temporarily, fossil fuel reliance.

Scotland Shut Down itsFinal Coal-Powered Plant

Towards the end of March, this year, Scotland shut downits final coal-fired power plant. Although the plant

supplied electricity for almost fifty years, the recentlyimplemented carbon tax was its death sentence.

Fortunately, Scotland’s now nonexistent coal-fired plantscould be indicative of a fossil fuel-free Europe in the years

to come.

As we continue our journey to a carbon emission-freeplanet, we are passing notable milestones that should

garner proper recognition. This may be just the beginning,but with continued dedication we will be able to achieve our

goal.