This week, our North Carolina team got in on the holiday festivities by carving a clean coal jack-o-lantern.
While the team’s jack-o-lantern is lit by candle, many homes around the country will rely on electric lights as a safe alternative.
Just how much of your state’s electricity comes from coal? Find out.
Yesterday, I was a guest on the “Diane Rehm Show” on National Public Radio.
I asked one of the other guests, author Jeff Goodell (who is one of coal’s harshest critics), about renewable energy. Right now, renewables account for a small fraction of our electricity. The Energy Information Administration projects that renewables will account for 12.5 percent of total U.S. electricity generation in 2030.
Even if you accept the most optimistic projection for renewables… which is that they could account for as much as 30 percent by 2030… where is the other 70 percent of our energy going to come from?
Goodell did not have an answer to that question.
See, we KNOW that electricity demand will be greater in 2030 than it is today. In fact, the U.S. Department of Energy predicts it will jump by 29 percent by that time (even as we become more energy efficiency we keep coming up with new things to plug into the wall). So we’ll need MORE electricity, not less.
My question as to where the "other" 70 percent is going to come from drives the point that America will need all of its available energy resources including coal.
If you missed last Thursday’s webinar, "Meeting America’s Demand for Energy," you’re in luck—the full webinar is now available online.
Tune in to learn about the energy issues facing the next administration and what needs to be done to overcome these challenges.
The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE) is committed to the idea that America can have the affordable, reliable electricity we need, with the clean environment we want. ACCCE’s Behind the Plug blog is the place for up-to-date news and analysis on clean coal technology developments and energy policy progress.
