For more than 30 years, scientists have warned that unless fossil fuel use is reduced to a minimum, Earth's climate and environment will be damaged beyond repair.

We're caught in a battle between the need for a livable planet versus Business As Usual.

Guess which side is winning...
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The world’s coal use is expected to reach a fresh high of 8.7 billion tonnes this year, and remain at near-record levels for years.

There has been record production of coal and power generation from coal since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine inflated global gas market prices, according to the International Energy Agency.

The IEA said the coal rebound, after a slump during the global Covid pandemic, means consumption of the fossil fuel is now on track to rise to a new peak of 8.77 billion tonnes by the end of the year – and could remain at near-record levels until 2027.

The Paris-based agency blamed power plants for the growing use of coal over the last year, particularly in China which consumes 30% more of the polluting fuel than the rest of the world put together.

Coal demand in China is expected to grow by 1% in 2024 to reach 4.9 billion tonnes, which is another record, according to the IEA. India is expected to see demand grow by more than 5% to 1.3 billion tonnes, a level previously reached only by China.
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FULL STORY -- https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/dec/18/coal-use-to-reach-new-peak-and-remain-at-near-record-levels-for-years

#Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #Capitalism #BusinessAsUsual