Unintended Environmental Consequences

[InChrist]

While I think it is important to take steps to protect the environment, just wondering if some of the politicians aren’t creating more damaging consequences.
Thoughts?


“It is easy to set targets, but the difficult part is to reach them. All-new rules for energy usage can have dire consequences that either come out of nowhere or result from bad planning. These energy problems are not like a bad haircut that you just let grow out to fix it. We could be facing an energy crisis that requires a decade to fix.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fuels because it creates the most amount of carbon dioxide. The switching of many power plants to natural gas drove down the price of coal and put many coal mines out of business. Now that the pandemic, hurricanes, and other factors are driving the price of natural gas to the moon, there is a huge demand for coal again.

In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year.”

Nearing Midnight Archives

 

[Left Coast]

While I think it is important to take steps to protect the environment, just wondering if some of the politicians aren’t creating more damaging consequences.
Thoughts?


“It is easy to set targets, but the difficult part is to reach them. All-new rules for energy usage can have dire consequences that either come out of nowhere or result from bad planning. These energy problems are not like a bad haircut that you just let grow out to fix it. We could be facing an energy crisis that requires a decade to fix.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fuels because it creates the most amount of carbon dioxide. The switching of many power plants to natural gas drove down the price of coal and put many coal mines out of business. Now that the pandemic, hurricanes, and other factors are driving the price of natural gas to the moon, there is a huge demand for coal again.

In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year.”

Nearing Midnight Archives

Sounds like a great argument for urgent investment in renewable energy infrastructure.

 

[Twilight Hue]

While I think it is important to take steps to protect the environment, just wondering if some of the politicians aren’t creating more damaging consequences.
Thoughts?


“It is easy to set targets, but the difficult part is to reach them. All-new rules for energy usage can have dire consequences that either come out of nowhere or result from bad planning. These energy problems are not like a bad haircut that you just let grow out to fix it. We could be facing an energy crisis that requires a decade to fix.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fuels because it creates the most amount of carbon dioxide. The switching of many power plants to natural gas drove down the price of coal and put many coal mines out of business. Now that the pandemic, hurricanes, and other factors are driving the price of natural gas to the moon, there is a huge demand for coal again.

In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year.”

Nearing Midnight Archives

These pea brained people just don't think past the immediate moment. They are incapable of thinking ahead, and cannot do proper risk assessment.

Countless people rely on fossil fuel as they had since mankind appeared on earth.

I'm wondering how the Amish are dealing with it since coal is a major nessessity for their lives.

 

[Revoltingest]

Oh, why do my actions have consequences?
- Homer Simpson

 

[Subduction Zone]

While I think it is important to take steps to protect the environment, just wondering if some of the politicians aren’t creating more damaging consequences.
Thoughts?


“It is easy to set targets, but the difficult part is to reach them. All-new rules for energy usage can have dire consequences that either come out of nowhere or result from bad planning. These energy problems are not like a bad haircut that you just let grow out to fix it. We could be facing an energy crisis that requires a decade to fix.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fuels because it creates the most amount of carbon dioxide. The switching of many power plants to natural gas drove down the price of coal and put many coal mines out of business. Now that the pandemic, hurricanes, and other factors are driving the price of natural gas to the moon, there is a huge demand for coal again.

In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year.”

Nearing Midnight Archives

Your source does not appear to be very reliable. When I looked up the amount of coal used in power generation the amount was at about 19%:

Share of electricity generation in the U.S. by fuel 2020 | Statista

In the graph that they provide you can easily see that coal is at its lowest level ever since 2007.

Other sources have similar figures. Where did your source get its figures from?

And I was referring to this quote from your source:

"In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year."

I wonder if they somehow conflated the 19% of electrical power generated by coal with an increase? The claim makes no sense when one looks at the available data.

 

[exchemist]

While I think it is important to take steps to protect the environment, just wondering if some of the politicians aren’t creating more damaging consequences.
Thoughts?


“It is easy to set targets, but the difficult part is to reach them. All-new rules for energy usage can have dire consequences that either come out of nowhere or result from bad planning. These energy problems are not like a bad haircut that you just let grow out to fix it. We could be facing an energy crisis that requires a decade to fix.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fuels because it creates the most amount of carbon dioxide. The switching of many power plants to natural gas drove down the price of coal and put many coal mines out of business. Now that the pandemic, hurricanes, and other factors are driving the price of natural gas to the moon, there is a huge demand for coal again.

In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year.”

Nearing Midnight Archives

I don't think politicians should be blamed for this, actually. It is natural that, after the partial economic shutdown the whole world had to endure due to the pandemic, there is now an attempt to catch up, which creates all manner of shortages, including that of energy.

I agree it is very unfortunate that the USA (and China and India) are still so dependent on coal for powergen that they have to ramp up coal burning to meet the shortfall. Let us hope this is a temporary spike and we will be able to mothball these coal plants before too long.

I now see from @Subduction Zone 's contribution that your data may be unreliable in any case. But I would not be surprised if more coal plants are running, seeing as global gas prices have surged due to short supply.

 

[Revoltingest]

While I think it is important to take steps to protect the environment, just wondering if some of the politicians aren’t creating more damaging consequences.
Thoughts?


“It is easy to set targets, but the difficult part is to reach them. All-new rules for energy usage can have dire consequences that either come out of nowhere or result from bad planning. These energy problems are not like a bad haircut that you just let grow out to fix it. We could be facing an energy crisis that requires a decade to fix.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fuels because it creates the most amount of carbon dioxide. The switching of many power plants to natural gas drove down the price of coal and put many coal mines out of business. Now that the pandemic, hurricanes, and other factors are driving the price of natural gas to the moon, there is a huge demand for coal again.

In just this year, U.S. power generation derived from coal increased from 15% to 25%. Power plants are expected to burn 19% more coal this year.”

Nearing Midnight Archives

As we transition to greener energy sources, such glitches
are bound to happen. They don't argue against continued
efforts, mistakes & mishaps notwithstanding.

 

[sun rise]

I'm wondering how the Amish are dealing with it since coal is a major nessessity for their lives.

Why the Amish are embracing solar

It’s not that the Amish aren’t allowed to use electricity, it’s that they believe too much reliance on electricity or access to public power grids will tie them too closely to the rest of the world and hurt their well-preserved culture. It’s not necessarily against their beliefs to have power. Before solar panels became readily available, the Amish used gasoline or diesel generators to produce their own electricity for a handful of luxuries – lighting and, in some cases, household appliances such as washing machines.

The Amish don’t believe electricity is bad; they believe having ready access to it will create temptation that can lead to television and other electrical luxuries that could hurt their values. Their culture values hard work and while they may appreciate appliances and tools that can make their jobs easier, the general consensus in their community is if they have complete access to these technologies, it will compromise their children’s work ethic and could lead to a tarnished version of their way of life over generations.

 

[sun rise]

As to short-sighted thinking, The biggest problem is with those who have the "why should we change" attitude with the assumption that it's worked ok until now so it will work ok in the future. These people won't look at the longer term trends as a wake-up call.

 

[pearl]

ABC World News Tonight with David Muir - Toxic mining fumes reducing local life expectancy - Bing video