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What does energy mean for our human life? October 17th, 2020 by Kalte Sonne By Reinhard Storz
Introduction When I read or hear people express themselves on the subject of energy, for example that energy is too cheap and should become much more expensive, I ask myself whether they even know what they are talking about and what the consequences of a massive increase in energy prices will be. In the following, I want to pursue this question, the consequences of a massive increase in energy prices. 1
Why do people need energy? Man needs energy to live. Every cell in our organism processes energy that we obtain from our food. In addition, we need energy to heat the apartment in winter, for example, to prepare our food when it is not just raw food but has to be cooked. But we also need energy for locomotion, be it the muscle strength for walking or cycling or fuel for public transport or private cars. But these examples are only the tip of the iceberg, so to speak, because there is also energy in an infinite number of things that we need every day. Where is energy actually hidden everywhere? As an arbitrary example, let's take the groceries we buy from the retailer. They contain the drive energy from the tractor, which plowed the field, brought in the seeds, distributed fertilizer and participated in the harvest. But there is also energy in the fertilizer, provided that it is not just animal excretions. For example, for the extraction of this artificial fertilizer on the edge of the desert in Morocco or Chile and its transport to the field. If this fertilizer is obtained in the local mine, the energy requirement is probably lower. As far as I know, a lot of energy is required for the production of nitrogen fertilizer in a chemical factory, which then has to be transported with energy to the field and distributed. Fertilizer is necessary to give the fields back those substances that we take from it with our food But we don't end there. After the food has been delivered to the dealer with energy expenditure, the effort continues. The shop needs to be lit and heated in winter. Perishable food is cooled using energy. To make a long story short, a significant proportion of food prices is determined by energy consumption. And the situation is comparable for many consumer goods. Which measures would contribute to future energy prices? Regardless of whether the mineral oil tax is increased, a flat rate is levied for the emission of CO2, whether more electricity is generated with solar roofs or wind turbines, all of this is associated with additional costs. Considerable additional costs are to be expected, for example, if, as planned, steel and cement are produced with hydrogen instead of coal-fired, whereby the hydrogen is to be produced with green electricity. What would be the foreseeable consequences of a massive increase in energy prices. It is to be feared that other countries will not follow our example, or only partially and with delay. As a result, German goods that are produced with more expensive energy and therefore have a higher price are bought less or no longer on the world market. The result is unemployment in Germany with costs for the general public. Some people 2
would have to look for work abroad. Higher energy costs lead to additional expenditure in many areas, for example for the lighting and heating of town halls, schools, universities, ministries, barracks etc. in the public sector. To do this, public services have to be cut or taxes increased. Building materials such as cement, bricks, insulating material etc. and their transport become more expensive due to higher energy costs. This increases the costs for the construction of new buildings and the energetic renovation of old buildings. The result would be less living space with rising rents. Higher energy costs cause higher costs in medical practices and hospitals, and due to higher fuel costs, the transport of sick people or people who have had an accident to the hospital will also increase, with the consequence that the contributions to the health insurance will be increased to compensate for this. These few examples, which one could continue indefinitely, may give an impression of how diverse the effects of higher energy prices are. The only thing that is certain is that our wallets would empty faster than some expected.
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