The protest started cheerfully enough on Wednesday, with music blaring and flags flying even under the driving rain. Then the police arrived, decked out in riot gear and backed by bulldozers, ready to demolish the village of Luetzerath to make way for the expansion of an opencast coal mine in the heart of Europe. As Germany turns back to the dirtiest fossil fuel to counter a global energy crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, this desolate settlement of drab brick houses and muddy fields has found itself at the heart of a broader debate about the future of the continent’s energy security—and its consequences for the planet.
Photographer: Ben Kilb/Bloomberg
- California is reeling from storms and flooding as rivers in the sky morph from a blessing to a curse.
- US climate envoy John Kerry said natural gas can play a role in slowing the planet’s warming, but only if producers capture carbon emissions.
- Electric-vehicle makers are hoping that an imminent wave of lithium supply will bring relief for their expansion plans after a two-year squeeze.
- The UK said it will ban single-use plastic cutlery and plates in England from October as part of a drive to reduce plastic pollution.
Some View on the World 