Trojan Horses and Big Lie of Clean Coal

The world is running out of oil and even if it weren’t, burning as much oil as we can results in the degradation of the world’s ecosystems. There is no point in pussyfooting around this subject. The bottom line is that unless the world consumes less fossil fuel energy or fossil fuels are entirely replaced by renewable energy sources (irregardless of the cost) then the world as we know it will face Old Testament-like disastrous consequences. We all should know this by now. The state of energy affairs as I have described them should not take anyone by surprise.

What may be surprising however is how much talk there is of just switching from strictly oil, the lifeblood of the entire industrialized world, to coal. Coal? Anyone that remembers their junior high American history textbooks will recall pictures of coal miners from the days of yore covered in soot from the dirtiest of all fossil fuels, coal. Before I read “The Empty Tank” by Jeremy Leggett I never would have thought that anyone living in the 21st century would seriously contemplate trying to replace oil with coal of all things. I stand before you corrected, befuddled and disgusted.

There has been a push, despite efforts at mainstreaming renewable energy technology, to abandon those efforts and instead move toward a coal-oil world economy. Like all things terrible and complicated in this world, China is the leader of nations aiming to hitch their Communist star to the wagon burning coal. As a matter of fact, China and coal have always been fast friends.

According to American.edu’s study of China and coal, “Coal accounts for about 70% of China’s total energy consumption. The development and production of the coal industry provides stability in China’s economic growth. The coal resources in China have been exploited since 476 BC, and it is estimated that even with all the years of coal exploration, China has total coal deposits of 4, 490 billion tons, which are as deep as 2,000 vertical metres. Eventually China will exploit its coal resources until they are eliminated.”

American.edu reports that China’s shortsightedness will result in massive environmental problems for Beijing and the world over. “The carbon dioxide emissions from coal burning is larger than any other energy sources such as, petroleum and liquefied natural gas. In addition, analysts argue that increases in carbon dioxide will contribute to global warming. Besides carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, which is believed to cause acid raid, is another pollutant generated from coal burning. When sulfur dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere, it takes approximately ten days for it to settle to the earth. In this period of time, the sulfate particles can travel several thousand kilometers. China is not the only country suffering from acid rain problems. Other Asian countries, such as Japan, Taiwan, S. Korea, and the Philippines have all reported acid rain problems originating from China’s coal burning pollution. The Central Research Institute of Electric Power and Industry in Japan has reported that acid rain from the China mainland will soon be a major problem for Japan.”