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| The facts on 'clean coal' |
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The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has issued a report that examines the pros and cons of a proposed technology that would capture coal plant carbon dioxide emissions and store them underground.
"We're on a collision course with a much hotter planet unless we drastically cut coal power plant emissions," said Barbara Freese, co-author of the report and author of the book Coal: A Human History.
"Carbon capture and storage holds promise, but we can't assume it will play a big role in cutting global warming pollution until we know whether it works at a commercial scale and what it will cost. In the meantime, we need to ramp up our reliance on energy efficiency and wind, solar and other renewable energy sources."
The United States has significant coal reserves and is likel to continue to generate power from it for many years to come.
Climate projections, however, indicate it must swiftly cut carbon dioxide emissions and ultimately reduce them by at least 80% of 2000 levels by mid-century to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.
Coal is the nation's largest source of global warming pollution, representing approximately a third of U.S. emissions, equal to the combined output of all U.S. cars, trucks, buses, trains and boats.
The UCS report, "Coal Power in a Warming World," proposes that the federal government fund five to 10 full-scale demonstration projects to test carbon-capture-and-storage technology's ability to cut coal power plant emissions.
It also calls
for a halt in construction of new coal plants that do not capture and store
carbon emissions, even though U.S. utilities are currently planning to build
more than 100 plants without the technology. The country can meet its near-term
energy needs and curb emissions, the report contends, using readily available
renewable-energy and energy-efficiency technologies.
