The True Cost of Germany’s Nuclear Exit

Lives lost. Billions wasted. Emissions unleashed.

In 2011, Germany made a fateful decision. In the wake of Fukushima, Chancellor Angela Merkel ordered the shutdown of the country’s nuclear power plants — a move driven by fear, not facts. Over the following decade, Germany closed all 17 reactors that once supplied a quarter of its electricity.

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Our new report, by WePlanet and the Anthropocene Institute reveals the devastating consequences of this policy:

• 730 million tonnes of extra CO₂ emissions — equivalent to an entire extra year of Germany’s national emissions.

• 19,200 premature deaths and 177,000 serious illnesses from coal pollution.

• €57 billion in additional costs borne by consumers and industry.
   

By replacing clean, reliable nuclear power with coal and gas, Germany undermined its own climate goals — and turned one of Europe’s greenest ambitions into an environmental and human tragedy.

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Read the full report:
👉 The German Nuclear Phase-Out: The true cost in lives, money, and carbon

German version here.