Coal Is The Worst

Representatives Nealy and Haler argue that electricity from coal is necessary and inexpensive. Coal is the worst of fossil fuels and is quite expensive if externalities are added. We in the United States use much more energy per capita than those in northern Europe, with both areas having a high quality of life. When we purchase and use fossil fuels, we are not paying for externalities: air pol­lution, global climate change, rising sea level, poorer health. The world has warmed 1°C (1.8° F) since the Industrial Revolu­tion.

Because of the long residence time of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, the temperature will continue to rise another 1.2°C (2.1°F) even if we stop all burning of fossil fuels today. Positive feedback increases global warming: for example, as bright white snow and ice are replaced with darker rock and water, less solar energy is reflected. So many ways exist to reduce our energy use without significantly diminishing our quality of life: lowering speed limits (as we did during the 1970s, with a reduction in highway accidents), changing thermostats (and how much we wear in summer and winter), installing solar hot water devices (expensive, but they save in the long run), more insulation in buildings (also cost ef­fective), buying local products (reducing transport distances, and helping our econ­omy), eliminating incandescent lights, and increasing transportation efficiency.

The Representatives state that continu­ing to burn coal is cheap, and that alterna­tive energy, cap-and-trade, and/or carbon taxes are expensive. A business-as-usual energy policy is likely to result in a further temperature increase of 2.8-4° C (5.0-7.2°F) and a further sea level rise of 2-4.5 meters (6.5-14.7 feet) by the year 2100 (data from EOS, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 2010). Should our children and grandchildren be burdened with such temperature and sea level rises? Accompanying temperature increase will be precipitation changes. Washington has lost one-third of its glaciers since 1950. Our rivers are over allocated and the ground water in our basalt aquifer is declining. It is predicted that dry areas will get drier. If so, our agricultural economy will suffer. Natural gas does supply more energy per unit of carbon dioxide than coal, but in the long run we must wean ourselves from all fossil fuels, to which President Bush observed we are addicted. I agree with the Representatives that wind (especially offshore wind) and solar are important, and that we must have "robust conservation". Even nuclear power and dams (with their drawbacks) are better than fossil fuels. We must also use wave energy, current turbines, landfill methane, and geothermal energy (in some cases, more research is needed).

In conclusion, the Representatives are correct when they state that we need "a cost-effective clean electric grid" that "re­duces greenhouse gases, supports domesti­cally supplied energy, provides long-term jobshellip;" Our government must pass an energy bill that drastically cuts carbon di­oxide emissions. In my opinion, there must be much more alternate energy for elec­tricity, and much higher standards for fuel efficiency. The short-term additional costs, even in this time of economic uncertainty, are worthwhile for our well-being and that of future generations.