Controversial Solutions to the problem of global warming
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"Clean Coal" Technology: An imperfect optionOver the years, pollution control laws have prompted the development of so-called "clean coal technologies" that can reduce the sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and soot emanating from coal-fired power plants. In Indiana, "clean coal technology" is defined as a technology that directly or indirectly reduces airborne emissions of sulfur or nitrogen-based pollutants associated with the combustion or use of coal. |
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The cost of carbon dioxide regulationUnlike other air emissions, carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants are not currently regulated in the United States, meaning there is no limitation, nor cost to power plants, for releasing CO2 into the atmosphere. However, this will likely change in the very near future. Most developed nations have responded to the overwhelming evidence linking greenhouse gas emissions to global warming by ratifying the Kyoto Protocol, which requires them to reduce their CO2 emissions. The United States has thus far failed to do so, but as the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, it is under increasing international pressure to act. |
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Nuclear power - A short-sited, costly and risky optionWith the emphasis on reducing carbon dioxide air emissions associated with coal-fired electric generation, recent discussions have included nuclear power as a solution to global climate change. The last U.S. commercial nuclear reactor came on-line over ten years ago. Nuclear power development has declined dramatically over the past several decades as rising economic costs (related to vastly extended construction times largely due to regulatory changes and pressure-group litigation) falling fossil fuel prices and flat load growth made nuclear power plant construction less attractive. |
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