Share Of US Power Made From Coal At 60-Year Low As Use Of Cleaner Natural Gas Grows

[Purveyor]

By JONATHAN FAHEY
AP Energy Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- America is shoveling coal to the sidelines.

The fuel that powered the U.S. from the industrial revolution into the iPhone era is being pushed aside as utilities switch to cleaner and cheaper alternatives.

The share of U.S. electricity that comes from coal is forecast to fall below 40 percent for the year, its lowest level since World War II. Four years ago, it was 50 percent. By the end of this decade, it is likely to be near 30 percent.

"The peak has passed," says Jone-Lin Wang, head of Global Power for the energy research firm IHS CERA.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/industries/share-of-us-power-made-from-coal-at-60-year-low-as-use-of-cleaner-natural-gas-grows/2012/06/12/gJQA3RepXV_story.html

[PoliticAverse]

1. The triumph of fracking. n/t

[phantom power]

2. Natural Gas is still a non-renewable fossil fuel

It will run out, and it emits CO2 when you burn it, no matter how "clean" it is compared to coal.

[NickB79]

3. Except nat. gas isn't as clean as most believe

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2011/09/09/315845/natural-gas-switching-from-coal-to-gas-increases-warming-for-decades/

A stunning new study by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) concludes:

In summary, our results show that the substitution of gas for coal as an energy source results in increased rather than decreased global warming for many decades….