It is undeniable that the United States cannot control the 84 percent of energy usage that occurs outside our country. Looking at trends in coal (which accounts for about 38 percent of fuels used worldwide), led by India and China, eight countries are constructing almost 1,900 coal-fired electricity plants. Including coal plants in the developing world, these new plants will bring the total outside the United States to well more than 5,000.
The United States has only 241 coal units in operation, so shuttering them would be a meaningless exercise in virtue-signaling. This doesn’t include the world’s many oil and gas-fired, CO2-producing plants.
Now the bad news: If we intend to decrease carbon emissions, it would be a long, difficult slog to find feasible methods to provide the energy that we need. The total world use of energy has increased by 50 percent over the last two decades, and the trend shows no signs of abating. Hydrocarbons currently provide 84 percent of energy, down only 3 percent in that timeframe.
It’s a safe assumption that few people on earth are willing to allow energy constraints to return us to the horse-and-buggy days, with stagnant economic growth and the absence of modern conveniences like airplanes, cars, and air conditioning. What, then, is the solution?
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