Wednesday 15 November 2017

How Spain Lead in Weather, Energy, and Employment This Summer

How Spain Lead in Weather, Energy, and Employment This Summer


August in Edinburgh is a time for comedy and performance arts on the chilly streets during the Fringe Festival. In France it means that it’s almost impossible to reach anyone in any office as the whole country seems to flock to the campsites across the southern reaches of the country. For the British and the Germans it means getting away from the unpredictability of their own weather and heading to the warmer climates of Spain.

All of this seems to go down like clockwork each year, but Spain has a few tricks ready to make sure this year is even more impressive.

The first of these is pretty obvious, as the mercury could reach beyond 40C for holidaymakers relaxing on the Spanish shoreline. Some places, such as the inland regions to the south, could experience temperatures all the way up to 45C.

This is the kind of heat that – while not the highest it’s ever been – is still well above average. The temperatures could also mean that Spain is currently the hottest country in Europe; which would be quite the accolade given the heatwaves affecting much of the southeast of Europe.

There’s more than just this however. Spain isn’t content with topping the charts for just the temperature; posting a drop in unemployment for the sixth month in a row. This means the country has seen a much more sustainable rate of recovery for employment than any other European country.

Spain still isn’t finished. This week it was revealed that Spain will be closing its oldest nuclear power plant as there isn’t enough support from local people and politicians to keep it open. The Santa Maria de Garona plant to the north of Spain hasn’t been active since 2013, and is now set to close officially as Spain embraces renewable energy sources; primarily solar power and wind power.

These three things might sound disconnected, and they are in some ways. Even so, they show the bigger picture of a country that is confident, growing, popular, and making all the right choices for keeping things healthy in the long term.