In Berlin and Cologne, monuments stand in the dark. Is Amsterdam following?
Dark monuments, cold buildings and unheated swimming pools: Germany is trying to cut back on energy consumption. Cologne Cathedral is now in the dark at night: is that also possible at the Palace on Dam Square?
Berlin, one o’clock in the morning. Christian Wolf is just leaving a party at Berlin’s city hall, the Rotes Rathaus, when he notices something. The city – or at least the square – is bathed in light. More than 1,400 places are centered on over 200 monuments. Can’t those lights go out, Wolf wonders, even if only partly for the night? We all need to immerse.
Wolf will not be the first to think so, but unlike many other Berliners, he is a member of the state parliament. “I discussed it with the leader of my group, Sebastian Czaja,” said Wolf, a member of the liberal FDP. “He agreed with me.”
The state coalition, to which the opposition party FDP does not belong, also turned out to be enthusiastic. The spots were turned off. Step by step, says Wolf: there were problems. “The lights couldn’t be set to a time, they came on automatically when it got dark.”
Forced to plow all over town to disable the manual systems. Cost: 40,000 euros. And instead of between midnight and 6 a.m., as was intended, Berlin’s monuments remain unlit day and night (for now).
Low hanging fruit
Anyway, Wolf’s mission was largely successful. And soon the lights at monuments were extinguished in other German cities as well. Since 1 September, the national policy has been part of a broader package of savings measures.
This is how shop doors are allowed since this month for example do not stay open too long, the thermostat in government buildings goes to a maximum of 19 degrees, facades must be turned off at night and shopkeepers are allowed between 4 and 10 p.m. A second package will come into effect on 1 October, mainly aimed at planning heating systems in large buildings.
In Cologne, many of those measures were already hit, says Moritz Schröder-Therre, of the Greens in the city council. Even the Dom, the city’s landmark, is unlit at night. In summer from 11 p.m., in autumn from 10 p.m. “It’s a logical decision,” he says.
The Greens, the largest faction and part of the coalition, are behind the plans. “The responsibility to save lies with all of us – with citizens, but even more with the city. We couldn’t resist low-hanging fruit like this, turning off lights.”
Important symbolic function
The task is therefore particularly great in Germany. The country was highly dependent on Russian gas. When energy minister Robert Habeck announced the austerity plans, he spoke of a ‘national effort’. All parts of society do their part.
According to Minister Habeck, the package that will go on 1 September is good for a saving of 2 to 2.5 percent. Not nearly enough to make it target of 20 percent for this winter, but every little bit helps, he.
Jilles van den Beukel, energy expert at the The Hague Center for Strategic Studies, believes that the real gains can be planned elsewhere, although he sees the symbolic importance of this package. “Keeping open shop doors closed is a good thing: we have to get used to a society in which energy is no longer cheap and in abundance. But the biggest savings should come from industry and heating in people’s homes.”
Hanco Jürgens, scientific assistant at the Germany Institute Amsterdam, also sees that the government above all wants to send out a signal. “The cabinet is constantly reporting that severe weather is imminent. Habeck is especially important, even more so than Chancellor Scholz. He continuously indicates how urgent the problem is.”
Safety on the street
Many Germans can live with the fact that Cologne Cathedral or the Gedächtniskirche are no longer illuminated, thinks Jürgens. “Saving the past, of course, with a party like the Greens, but also with the current SPD, for example.”
Yet there is also criticism, especially from entrepreneurs. They follow that their business is declining if the doors are to stay. In addition, chairman of the trade association Stefan Genth . confirmed previously in German media, lighting also has a feature that is sometimes overlooked. “Shopkeepers use shop window lamps to ensure safety and social control on the street at night.”
FDP’er Wolf is critical. He applied only decorative lights from his batch, no window lamps. And he sees more problems with the national restrictions. “Individuals are no longer allowed to heat their swimming pools with gas from the energy grid. How will the government check that? The file in the lives of citizens would be too big.”
Schröder-Therre is aware of these security questions, but does not come up with any problems. “We definitely have to keep an eye on that,” he says. “At the same time, the municipality is acting step by step, not hastily. We have no idea that safety is at stake.”
From the Eiffel Tower to Dam Square
The Eiffel Tower has gone into darkness more than an hour earlier since last weekend. The important symbol of Paris, after all the city of light, is normally lit up until 1 am. It is now 11:45 PM. Many other government buildings, including Parisian museums and the City Hall, turn off the lights as early as 10 p.m. “It is a symbolic but important step,” said Mayor Anne Hidalgo.
There are no plans yet in Amsterdam for a dark Palace on Dam Square near Central Station. Most buildings are lit until midnight at the most, intended by aldermen Zita Peltransitie (Sustainability and Energy Transition). Only at some busy locations – such as Dam Square and Central Station – the lights are on day and night. This is partly for safety reasons, let the announcement know.
Other measures have been taken. In the Zuidas, companies turn off the lights at night and the thermostat is turned down in municipal buildings. Amsterdammers can also continue to make use of energy coaches, who give tips on saving energy. People who earn less than 140 percent of the minimum wage can call on the Fixbrigades protections, which provide insulating homes for free. Both the number of energy coaches and the Fixbrigade have been scaled up.
In the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, a typically Dutch phenomenon has been chosen: consultation. The municipalities in the region work together with institutions, companies and citizens to save energy. Trust is of course a great asset, but the municipality is also investigating the possibilities for enforcement. They are currently limited.
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