If the UK, with all of its existing infrastructure can do it, where they need to build NEW infrastructure to replace existing coal plants, then why can't growing countries immediately build these new infrastructures that aren't coal, and thus way less polluting?
> then why can't growing countries immediately build these new infrastructures that aren't coal
They can, but when money is involved it all changes until it's too late. Contracts last hundred of years, exit clauses are expensive. Coal contracts established in the 90's won't be expiring for at least another 50 years.
My mother, a contract sectary back in 70's. One of her jobs was working for Exxon on a contract for fracking Australia in 1995. This was in 1970's. No one thought of climate change than and it's one thing she deeply regrets.
A country doesn't want to invest on something that won't give them a major up-front payday, force them to pay out to exit their current contract even if by maturity age it would be making them money.
They can afford to. Also, looking at the chart provided by the article, it looks like their power consumption peaked in ~2005? And it's been going down ever since. Compare with India, which is a much, much poorer country per capita, yet their energy consumption is every increasing
If the UK, with all of its existing infrastructure can do it, where they need to build NEW infrastructure to replace existing coal plants, then why can't growing countries immediately build these new infrastructures that aren't coal, and thus way less polluting?
> then why can't growing countries immediately build these new infrastructures that aren't coal
They can, but when money is involved it all changes until it's too late. Contracts last hundred of years, exit clauses are expensive. Coal contracts established in the 90's won't be expiring for at least another 50 years.
My mother, a contract sectary back in 70's. One of her jobs was working for Exxon on a contract for fracking Australia in 1995. This was in 1970's. No one thought of climate change than and it's one thing she deeply regrets.
A country doesn't want to invest on something that won't give them a major up-front payday, force them to pay out to exit their current contract even if by maturity age it would be making them money.
They can afford to. Also, looking at the chart provided by the article, it looks like their power consumption peaked in ~2005? And it's been going down ever since. Compare with India, which is a much, much poorer country per capita, yet their energy consumption is every increasing
Discussion (78 points, 27 days ago, 71 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41443347
UK now burns wood chips that are far worse for the environment, also making the air carcinogenic.