Submitted via IRC for Bytram
U.S. greenhouse emissions fell in 2017 as coal plants shut
Greenhouse gases emissions from the largest U.S. industrial plants fell 2.7 percent in 2017, the Trump administration said, as coal plants shut and as that industry competes with cheap natural gas and solar and wind power that emit less pollution.
The drop was steeper than in 2016 when emissions fell 2 percent, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said.
EPA acting administrator Andrew Wheeler said the data proves that federal regulations are not necessary to drive carbon dioxide reductions.
[...] While Wheeler gave the administration credit for the reductions, which mainly came from the power sector, the numbers also underscore that the administration has not been able to stop the rapid pace of coal plant shutdowns.
[...] Natural gas releases far less carbon dioxide when burned than coal and a domestic abundance of gas has driven a wave of closures of coal plants. In 2017 utilities shut or converted from coal-to-gas nearly 9,000 megawatts (MW) of coal plants.
[...] The trend of U.S. coal plant shutdowns is expected to pick up this year, with power companies expecting to shut 14,000 MW of coal plants in calendar year 2018.
(Score: 3, Informative) by requerdanos on Thursday October 18 2018, @05:34PM (2 children)
On the other hand,
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/trump-advocates-clean-coal-despite-not-knowing-what-it [msnbc.com]
(Score: 1) by Sulla on Thursday October 18 2018, @05:51PM
Trump gets to sell a product that nobody wants to buy and get none of the downsides of saying it (increased pollution) and all of the upsides of saying it (less disenfranchised workers).
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 18 2018, @06:31PM
Trump isnt emotionally attached to coal, he just wanted to remove as many political impediments as possible to people choosing the best energy source for their needs. If that isnt coal, who cares?
People are projecting their emotional attachment to solar/wind onto him, like they literally cannot comprehend rational thought processes any more.