Certainly not just India, the switch is nearly universal. Some countries are getting a faster start ditching big polluting coal plants than others. Three closed yesterday in the US, for instance.
India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
51–60 of 160 posts
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#52Earlier quoted context omitted.
> far surpassing the US Why is this a problem? India has 4x the population...
For one, health issues related to air quality have no basis on per capita pollution.
But air quality degeneration does have a lot of basis on per capita pollution. The per capita argument was good enough to set the tone at Paris, for an agreement between all the nations on this planet. The argument against per capita pollution contribution is just willful ignorance.
Besides, none of you have even bothered to look at the figures. India's current coal consumption is less than 30% of the US, for a population 4-5 times larger. Even if we double our coal consumption, it wouldn't outstrip US at their current levels.
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
> In many ways it's similar to how telephony spread in the developing world. They skipped landlines entirely and went straight to GSM. And also how banking/payment is spreading in Africa: mobile-to-mobile, skipping credit cards entirely.
I love the elegance and futurism of paying with mobile phones like that, but do the telephone companies operate in a similar manner to financial institutions there? For instance, if I deposit money, do I receive interest? What happens to my funds if the phone company goes bankrupt? Are there similar regulations to banks?
When was the last time you earned a noteworthy amount of interest on a bank deposit?
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
The damage of bringing a billion people electricity?
A billion more people who can now participate in the system that's already polluted the planet to the brink.
Much better to keep them empoverished and undeveloped, right? /s
This sort of argument is exactly why I see environmentalism as anti-human at its heart.
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
> far surpassing the US Why is this a problem? India has 4x the population...
Why is this not a problem? In the world of pollution and environmental health, using justification of because another country does it doesn't work.
So is an Indian worth less than an American?
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
A billion more people who can now participate in the system that's already polluted the planet to the brink.
Much better to keep them empoverished and undeveloped, right? /s This sort of argument is exactly why I see environmentalism as anti-human at its heart.
I agree with you, but can you talk more about this? Is there an article or some other resource that talks more about this topic?
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why is this not a problem? In the world of pollution and environmental health, using justification of because another country does it doesn't work.
So is an Indian worth less than an American?
Neither is worth anything if we as a society kill the planet we call home so this isn't about race or worth. It is about us as a planet deciding to keep our planet healthy. Like I said, just because one country does it doesn't make it right for others. The others should be scolding the US not following in their naive ignorant foot steps.
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
The thing I don't understand is why it's assumed that somehow the Paris Treaty is somehow enforced, or binding, or that it will even actually improve conditions more-so than independent initiative. I personally think that the USA can achieve its goal without the Paris Treaty through personal responsibility of the states, and independent initiatives through counties, and cities. That type of independent resolution is…
Treaties like this have a big signaling component, just like macroeconomics. Improvements are perfectly possible without them, but even a toothless treaty affects all kinds of decisions downstream. We also take into account that energy production is about large capital investments that aren't looking at tomorrow, but a decade or two ahead at the minimum. Building a new coal plant today isn't a bad idea because it'll…
As a current Missouri resident - I am getting the heck out of here.
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
Lots of US states are charging ahead on their own. Take California, for example.
I have lived on California my entire life and all we have managed to accomplish were feel good initiatives which made for great PR puff pieces and were quickly shuffled down the road. I remember the first electric car, hailed as a true step forward, that was subsequently killed. Go to Santa Monica beach patrol stations and see all of the failed electric car station plug poles that were sawed off and tossed onto a hea…
> I remember the first electric car
You should give Guinness a call. They think the oldest living person is 117, and you should have that beat by at least 15 years.
Re: India, Once a Coal Goliath, Is Fast Turning Green
#60Earlier quoted context omitted.
A billion more people who can now participate in the system that's already polluted the planet to the brink.
Much better to keep them empoverished and undeveloped, right? /s This sort of argument is exactly why I see environmentalism as anti-human at its heart.
Most environmentalists want to bring a high standard of living to everybody in a sustainable way. Yes, there are some over on the "voluntary human extinction" end of the spectrum, but you shouldn't tar them all with that brush.