Obama's War On Coal Leaves US Vulnerable

Energy Fix

The coal-fired electricity projected to be retired over the next five years is more than four times greater than retirements executed during the preceding five-year period, a mere 6.5 GW by comparison. The estimated 9 GW of coal-fired capacity retirements expected in 2012 will likely be the largest one-year amount EVER. And that record likely won’t stand very long because 10 GW are projected to be retired in 2015.

...The risks of brownouts and perhaps even blackouts on weekdays challenged by extreme weather loom as a growing risk that could trigger a backlash against emissions regulations, renewable sources of electricity and competitive power markets. _EnergyFix

As Obama fulfills his campaign promise to green supporters to put coal plants out of business -- and to prevent the building of new coal plants -- he is placing the US power grid and US industry in an increasingly vulnerable position.

Obama mad grand promises about the potential for "green energy" and "green energy jobs", but out of the tens of billions wasted on green energy projects, almost all are either bankrupt or struggling.

Put simply: Green energy cannot replace coal

Reading the entire analysis at the energy collective will help you to understand just how badly the green strategies go wrong. You will get the barest hint of how much this grand green strategy will cost American power consumers.

Based on this analysis of replacing all U.S. coal power with clean energy, total U.S. CO2 emissions would also be reduced by almost 22% from 2005 levels; the ACES base year for target CO2 reductions. Assuming other clean energy alternatives are competitive to replacing coal power with natural gas & wind clean power (i.e. $51.50/MT CO2), the total average-annual cost to achieve the ACES ultimate 80% CO2 reduction target would be about $220 Billion/yr. This is equivalent to about $1,835 direct + indirect increased Household annual power related expenses or almost 4% of total average gross Household income. _Green Energy Cannot Replace Coal

The reality will be much worse than even the above very sober analysis reveals. The reality is always worse than what the government promises, than what emotionally earnest advocates promise.

Obama's approach to energy and to the economy has been misguided and ideologically skewed.

From offshore drilling to Canadian oil sands to coal to nuclear, Obama's approach to energy has resulted in a stunting of energy production and a slowing of economic growth. The only exception is in tight oil & gas fracking -- and Obama's EPA came very close to trying to shut down that enterprise -- virtually the only bright spot in Obama's entire economy.

The third world and the emerging world show us what happens when bad energy policies are superimposed upon government corruption, debt, and demographic decline. If the current US president is re-elected, we should expect to see the US more firmly set upon a parallel declining path.