After Gutenberg

The IPCC (Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change) has declared that global warming is ‘unequivocal’ and that human activity has played a significant role in these changes.

In the opinion of Jim Hansen, by far the most important action that can be taken to Save Life on Earth is a moratorium by all developed countries (that includes us, U.S.) on any new coal-fired power plants that lack CO2-capture. Such a moratorium should occur without further delay.

The second most important action that can be taken, which Hansen really includes in his first suggestion, is a renewed effort to phase-out existing coal-powered power plants. I count this separately because it requires a different initiative. For some power plants it will mean closing, for others it will mean the installation of carbon capture to meet existing standards. In the United States, such standards already are in place, but have been ignored in the interest of BAU (Business As Usual).

Actually, such effort will be a smart move on the part of utility companies still significantly contributing to the very real problem of anthropogenic carbon emissions. Why? Well, Hansen’s other major recommendation is gradual implementation of severe financial disincentives for pollution from using coal.

For such policy to occur requires policy makers to accept the evidence presented by Hansen and a thousand other climate scientists that anthropogenic emissions are a the risk to the Planet. If there is sufficient realization that an increase in Green House Gas emissions has set us on an irrevocable path to mass extinction along with destruction of our eco-system on Planet Earth, then denial of such policy would be foolish, if not downright ecocidal.

To repeat his proposal, this would be “in the form of a tax, cap-and-trade, or some combination.”

Why is a rising price necessary, why not just burn oil and gas quickly? It is important to “stretch” oil and gas supplies because energy transitions take time. An increasing carbon price is needed to wean us off fossil fuels, to break the oil-addiction, to develop technology for a clean-planet future, to push us to higher energy efficiencies. Improved efficiencies will be essential in the “beyond petroleum” era. If we do not get on such a course, when “peak-oil” is reached we will be driven to planet-destroying actions such as squeezing oil out of coal, cooking the Rocky Mountains to drip oil out of tar-shale, or other brainless actions of a staggering, dangerous addict (My emphasis).

Doktor Fischer-Tropsch, or how I stopped worrying and learned to love Climate Change

The problem with these recommendations, as this blog recently pointed out is that it leaves the problem-solving to the politicians. Another problem is with the metaphor that Dr. Hansen uses, is that since long before the addict appears brainless and stagger, he or she is quite dangerous, committing crimes to support her or his addiction without regard for whom those crimes might harm.