In view of the impending shortage of gas and high energy prices, the lights are increasingly going out at night in many German cities. As a survey of city administrations by the epd news agency revealed, many are already doing without the lighting of landmarks, monuments and prominent buildings such as town halls, museums and libraries. Where all the lights are still on at night, energy saving measures are currently being examined almost everywhere. This week, Berlin publicly switched off the nocturnal irradiation of its sights. Landmarks such as the Victory Column, the Berlin Cathedral or the Lustgarten are no longer illuminated. The radiators are to be gradually disconnected at a total of 200 objects. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the Bundestag have also ordered electricity savings. The lighting at Bellevue Palace and the Reichstag building with its famous dome have been greatly reduced.
As of this week, 238 buildings, squares or bridges in Leipzig, including the opera, Thomaskirche and Gewandhaus, are no longer illuminated at night. At least around 170,000 watts are saved, the city said when asked. The night lighting of bodies of water and trees was also discontinued.
“I would recommend closing doors and heating certain rooms,” says Harald Lacher, energy consultant at the consumer center. Heat pumps are also recommended.
26.07.2022 | 13:11 min
Many state capitals already leave their town halls in the dark at night, including Potsdam, Hanover, Saarbrücken, Stuttgart, Wiesbaden and Munich. Bremen is currently examining whether to switch off the lighting on the market square ensemble with the town hall and Bremen Roland, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In Cologne, the lighting of the cathedral is being put to the test, as a city spokesman announced. Most parishes have long since reacted to the prices and turned off the spotlights, according to the Evangelical Church in Central Germany.
Savings as a result of the Ukraine war are not limited to the capitals, however. In Bavaria, for example, the Nuremberg Imperial Castle, the Cathedral of Our Lady in Ingolstadt or the Perlach Tower in Augsburg are no longer illuminated at night. In Rostock, too, the illumination of the town hall, city gates and churches will be reduced in the coming days. According to their own statements, other cities, including Kiel, Erfurt, Dresden and Hamburg, are still examining energy-saving measures.
The third largest city in Bavaria is leading the way when it comes to saving energy. Historic facades are no longer illuminated, fountains are turned off and street lighting is dimmed.
19.07.2022 | 01:52 min
According to their own statements, the sponsors of Saxony-Anhalt’s tourism magnets Naumburg and Merseburg Cathedral have no shutdown plans. The cathedral donors point out that most of their lighting system has already been converted to more energy-efficient LEDs. And elsewhere in Germany, despite all efforts to save, the lighting in some castles and museums should remain switched on for fear of burglary and vandalism.
Cities and municipalities not only want to save on lighting, but also on gas consumption. In many places it has been decided or is being considered to turn down the heating. In Kaiserslautern, for example, the indoor temperature in municipal schools and public buildings is to be reduced from 20 to 17 degrees. In Hanover and Ludwigshafen there will no longer be hot water in the showers in swimming pools and sports halls.
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