What AOC and the other Chicken Littles out there won’t talk about is the effect of successful, wealthy countries moving to cleaner fuel options.
Instead of submitting to heavy-handed regulations demanding we change our ways — like the Paris Accord would have required of us — America is leading the way without someone sticking a gun to our heads.
Energy-related C02 emissions are the Big Problem that needs to be solved, globally, and — judging by the extremist protesters clogging our steets from time to time, and a crying teenage girl scolding our leaders, you might believe that America is the worst of all culprits.
One thing you couldn’t POSSIBLY believe, based on those clues, would be that Trump’s America — despite an economy revving into high gear — leads the world in REDUCING our C02 emissions… according to 2019 figures from the IEA.
The United States saw the largest decline in energy-related CO2 emissions in 2019 on a country basis – a fall of 140 Mt, or 2.9%, to 4.8 Gt. US emissions are now down almost 1 Gt from their peak in the year 2000, the largest absolute decline by any country over that period. A 15% reduction in the use of coal for power generation underpinned the decline in overall US emissions in 2019. Coal-fired power plants faced even stronger competition from natural gas-fired generation, with benchmark gas prices an average of 45% lower than 2018 levels. As a result, gas increased its share in electricity generation to a record high of 37%. Overall electricity demand declined because demand for air-conditioning and heating was lower as a result of milder summer and winter weather. — IEA
As a consequence of this changeover, there was a net REDUCTION in global C02 production… with, as we have stated, USA leading the way.
Global CO2 emissions from coal use declined by almost 200 million tonnes (Mt), or 1.3%, from 2018 levels, offsetting increases in emissions from oil and natural gas. Advanced economies saw their emissions decline by over 370 Mt (or 3.2%), with the power sector responsible for 85% of the drop. Milder weather in many large economies compared with 2018 had an important effect on the trends, reducing emissions by around 150 Mt. Weaker global economic growth also played a role, moderating the increase in emissions in major emerging economies such as India. — IEA
Oh, and while we’re on the topic of counterintuitive environmental effects, here’s another one the experts haven’t been talking about…
Windmill blades only last 20 years, and can’t be recycled.
They are an enormous — and enormously expensive — problem for end-of-life disposal. They are filling landfills, and can only be hauled at enormous cost on specialized equipment.
