大象传媒

There are dire warnings about the heating of the planet. Coal is a significant contributor to global warming. So what is the future of this increasingly controversial fuel? Kevin Surace of the App consultancy Appvance used to run a technology firm, aimed at reducing emissions from buildings in the USA, and is closely involved in future projections for businesses. He says it's quite credible to argue that it's already too late to stop a serious environmental disaster. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a number of energy companies are fighting proposed government limits on carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants; we hear from Nancy Gravatt from the US National Mining Association. Lord Nicholas Stern, chair of Economics and Government at the London School of Economics and author of the influential Stern review on climate change in 2006, tells us the biggest debate and cause for optimism over coal today comes from China. It is of course the world's biggest polluter, and is alone responsible for burning fifty per cent of the world's coal through its power stations. But he says attitudes there are finally changing.