Structural Change in the Lausitz Lignite Mining Area

The German "Energiewende" implies a massive reduction of lignite use in the future. Lignite mining areas, like the Lausitz, will face challenges of structural change, as lignite mining and power generation have been key economic pillars in the past. Thus the Energiewende must be backed by consistent structural policies for the German lignite mining regions.

Against this background, the Green party (Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen) of the federal state of Brandenburg has comissioned the Wuppertal Institute to develop recommendations for strategic elements of a pre-emtive structural policy for the Lausitz region. The policy brief builds on experiences with structural change processes in North-Rhine Westfalia and the Rhine lignite mining area (Rheinisches Revier).