Special Report
European power struggles:
Can public resistance be overcome?
Call it people power. Or rather, people against power. Ordinary Europeans have become experts in delaying or even stopping the introduction of energy technologies. How can public resistance be overcome?
There have been protests all over Europe against wind farms, geothermal facilities and other green initiatives. People are organising, demonstrating, and attempting to elect politicians who promise not to build anything. If that isn't enough, citizens are using the courts to tie up planners and builders of new energy technologies for years, often with the help of local municipalities or environmental groups.
