What happens when people practicing a pseudo-religion/political movement push to replace reliable old school power with different old school methods which have been made unreliable? (I’m shocked that this was allowed to be published in the far left Cult of Climastrology supporting UK Guardian)
Risk of Christmas electricity blackouts next year, warn MPs
Coal power station closures have put UK in danger of National Grid failing to meet demand over winter months, says reportBritain could be facing nationwide festive blackouts next winter unless radical changes are made to the UK’s electricity network, MPs have warned.
A report called Electric Shock: Will The Christmas Lights Go Out Next Winter? has been published by the British Infrastructure Group (BIG) of MPs, chaired by Grant Shapps.
Within it they claim that government targets for closing coal power stations and expanding renewable sources to hit climate change goals have rapidly reduced the UK’s generating output.
This, they say, has allowed prices to shoot upwards and slashed capacity margins, which are “so tight that National Grid’s emergency power deals have become the normâ€.
Well, gee, if only people had told us that the push to close coal (remember, I’m no big fan of coal) fired power plants prior to things like wind and solar being totally reliable and providing at least as much energy is a Bad Idea. They should have told us that prices would skyrocket and diminish capacity.
“While nobody questions the noble intentions behind these interventions, it is clear that a perfect coincidence of numerous policies designed to reduce Britain’s carbon dioxide emissions has had the unintended effect of hollowing out the reliability of the electricity generating sector,†he added.
Who would have thunk it? Noble intentions (by people who mostly refuse to stop using fossil fuels themselves and will be the first to complain when they’re sitting in the dark freezing) cause problems. The funny part is when these intentions come back and bite the Warmists straight in the ass. Unfortunately, they drag the rest of us along for the ride.
Really? It’s a “coincidence” that policies obviously destructive to electric availability have destroyed electric availability? Only a person with a university graduate degree could be this stupid.
Teach: Yes, there may well be some issues as coal dies a lingering death. The UK is bringing gas plants online which are much cleaner and more efficient than coal. But the US has had brown-outs and black-outs and survived (due to corporate skullduggery mostly).
Another article is less gloomy and touts the economic and health advantages as nations transition away from filthy coal.
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-37220703
Teach: It’s ironic that temperature extremes are an unintended consequence of unfettered coal burning, causing even MORE demand for electricity for heating and cooling! If the actual health and environmental costs of coal had been incorporated into the pricing of coal electricity we wouldn’t have this problem now. Remediating global warming will cost the world’s nations trillions of dollars plus untold misery.
Jeff, I believe we should transition away from coal, as I’ve written many times. It is dirty environmentally (not referring to CO2) and it is still rather dangerous. But, we need to have the replacements in place beforehand, and ones that are as inexpensive.
We also do seriously need to upgrade the grid, along with diversifying it. Remember that blackout in the NE a couple years after 9/11?
To just slap up wind and solar, and it not being able to cover the coal is foolish. And lets’ not forget that many of the same people are also against the use of natural gas.
J, what temperature extremes are you talking about? And if so, the proof of the tie between coal and temp. extremes.