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Killing the Coal Industry

November 13, 2008 in Barry's Rant, Environment, Uncategorized by barry

I was looking at the Rocky Mountains Institute web page directed to transport, which follows watching The Daily Show last night in which I heard for the first time someone saying that the smart way ahead is to plan for the termination of our dependence on fossil fuels.  The RMI is planning for the end of oil, Australia I would propose needs to plan to eliminate coal mining by 2050 as well.

Why kill the goose that laid the golden egg?  Because someone is going to work out how to produce power without pollution.  That person, company, group or country will have a mortgage on the future.  The market economist must admit that with the climate situation as it is, there is definitely demand there.

In the Daily Show interview the ‘bubble’ nature of economics was discussed.  That is we had the first wave of internet players, this created a hyper infalted bubble that crashed and cost a lot of people lots of money. When the dust cleared we had this amazing resource called the World Wide Web which is now core to most of world trade.
We can look at Coal in the same way.  We currently have a hyperinflated buble of coal generated power networks.  Once this bubble bursts, there will be huge costs and business failures etc, BUT we will be left with highly valuable power networks that the new generators can leverage.

But how do we get there?

2 ways:

  • Wait - then pay the price and conintue as a third rate economy, desperately trying to catch up.
  • Take the pain in lumps
  • Stop all subsidies to fossil fuel immediately
  • E.g remove trade incentives
  • Tax emissions
  • Make them pay for the water they use
  • Cancel all exploration permits immediately
  • Stop all research into so called ‘clean coal’
  • Direct all available research into truly clean, sustainable non polluting technologies.  This should be consisdered a natinal emergency
  • Provide direct and substantial support for individuals to clean up our act
    • Free, non-poluting universal public transport
    • Free, non polutting  personal  public transport
    • Disuade private fossil fuel use
      • in cars, lawnmowers etc

      Of course we cant see thus happening for a while because of the outrageious lobbying power that these organisations have.

      Coal Miners, Oil companies etc may well employ a lot of people, but the damage they are doing to us is now measurable and must be acknowledged.

      Protecting these dinosaurs serves noone, we must see them off the premises for our own good, regardless of how good they make us feel.

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