Coal the true climate change bad guy, analysis shows

theglobeandmail.com ^ | 19 Feb 2012 | Bob Weber

[smokingfrog]

One of the world’s top climate scientists has calculated that emissions from Alberta’s oil sands are unlikely to make a big difference to global warming and that the real threat to the planet comes from burning coal.

“I was surprised by the results of our analysis,” said Andrew Weaver, a University of Victoria climate modeller, who has been a lead author on two reports from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “I thought it was larger than it was.”

In a commentary published Sunday in the prestigious journal Nature, Weaver and colleague Neil Stewart analyze how burning all global stocks of coal, oil and natural gas would affect temperatures. Their analysis breaks out unconventional gas, such as undersea methane hydrates and shale gas produced by fracking, as well as unconventional oil sources including the oil sands.

They found that if all the hydrocarbons in the oil sands were mined and consumed, the carbon dioxide released would raise global temperatures by about .36 degrees C. That’s about half the total amount of warming over the last century.

When only commercially viable oil sands deposits are considered, the temperature increase is only .03 degrees C.

In contrast, the paper concludes that burning all the globe’s vast coal deposits would create a 15-degree increase in temperature. Burning all the abundant natural gas would warm the planet by more than three degrees.

Governments around the world have agreed to try to keep warming to two degrees.

[Roccus]

Course the dumb asses in W. Virginia and Pennsylvania voted for this marxist ass clown so they get what they voted for.
And W. Va has NO other industry besides coal.

Sorry to burst yer bubble Joe, but WV did NOT vote for Zer0.

[thackney]

All true, but the EPA is closing our coal plants without replacing their output.

Natural Gas electrical generation has been growing and I believe you will see continued growth in this area.

http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/excel/epmxlfile1_1.xls

http://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/sec7_4.pdf

[Joe Boucher]

Correct Roccus,
But they did vote for Manchin who is an obammy butt boy regardless of how he packages himself. And Rockafeller who is just freaken insane. Both beyond stupid.
And my bubble is just fine thanks

[Joe Boucher]

thackney,
You’ve been in third world countries and know that coal is the peoples fuel and heat there.
And yes,
You are absolutely correct in that natural gas is going to continue to grow as an energy source.
But until we’ve gotten over this DEPRESSIoN it is not wise to shut down America’s coal industry.
That includes power plants, barge traffic, mines and the associated mom and pop services that provide for these places.
And for what, to appease the EPA?

[thackney]

As far as I am concerned, economy issues or not, it is always dumb to shut down our coal plants. That resource is too massive and too expensive to use for transportation fuel(through coal-to-liquid conversions).

I only meant to explain there is some additional power projects that are coming only line that are more dependable and affordable than solar and wind junk.

[Joe Boucher]

If they can’t make solar work in a financially feasable way in Nevada then it ain’t gonna work in North Dakota.
Now I admit I’m not the smartest guy out there but even i understand that.

[smokingfrog]

And how long would it take to mine all that coal, anyway? A hundred years or more?

[Joe Boucher]

Coal in W.Va. is easily taken if the EPA gets out of the picture and they simply top mountains.
Course the epa won’t let that happen.
You EVER driven around S.W. West Virginia? There is coal or nothing.

[Publius6961]

“I was surprised by the results of our analysis,” said Andrew Weaver, a University of Victoria climate modeller, who has been a lead author on two reports from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

I stopped reading right there.
Climate modeling is way too susceptible to fraud, as we've discovered in the last four years.

GIGO still rules.

[Roccus]

Rockefeller and Manchin are the result of an underground, ineffectual and corrupt GOP here in WV (see the ‘08 Super Tuesday WV GOP Presidential Convention). Were it not for Raese’s personal fortune, the GOP would have run some nobody in ‘10 and lost by an even greater margin. This is a state that has voted Republican in the last three Presidential elections, prolly will again this year, and yet in that time the GOP managed to acquire only ONE state-wide seat for ONE term. In the last Congressional election, the GOP even ran a life-long RAT against Rahall (and still lost). The ONLY reason McKinley won WV 1 was because Mollohan retired. Moore-Capito is a legacy and in bed with the Rats.

Unless and until the RNC whips the WV GOP into shape, the WV Republicans will be more than happy to remain back-benchers selling their votes to the Rats for whatever crumbs are thrown their way.

[maryz]

We have more coal than anyone and the rest of the world uses coal.

Didn't Clinton put off-limits the second largest clean-burning coal deposit in the world -- made the area a National Park or something. I disremember (sorry -- I'm reading a Maggody book!) the details, but the area is somewhere in the Northwest. And Clinton did it (apparently) as a favor to his Indonesian buddies, who have the largest deposit of clean-burning coal in the world.

[TheOldLady]

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