Coal Demand
The Art
The Science
What’s Alarming
According to the International Energy Administration, “…coal supplies a third of all energy used worldwide and makes up 38% of electricity generation, as well as playing a crucial role in industries such as iron and steel”. The landmark report from the UN panel on climate change is clear that, in order to prevent catastrophic warming, the use of coal as an electricity source must drop to between 1 and 7% by 2050. Yet, as can be seen by the graph, coal demand, while declining or stabilizing in more developed countries, is anticipated to rise dramatically in China, India and Southeast Asia, dwarfing the impacts of coal reductions in other parts of the planet. It is critical that global efforts are focused to reduce this projected demand through alternative energy sources and that, until this can be accomplished, cleaner and more efficient technologies are pursued to minimize the devastating impact of these increased coal-driven fossil fuel emissions and pollution.
Graph source: International Energy Administration
