Wake up call for NSW electricity generation and coal industry

Dr Kaye said, "The release of the annual outlook by the International Energy Agency (IEA) is a stark reminder that electricity generation must move beyond last century’s carbon intensive dinosaurs and turn to renewable energy sources and greater efficiencies.
 
"The IEA is the leading international body on energy resources and they are warning that continued business as usual will result in global temperatures rising 6 degrees by the end of the century. This will be an appalling legacy to leave future generations.
 
"In the face of this reputable and credible threat it is the height of irresponsibility for the Australian Coal Association to play marketing games by rebadging its destructive product as 'NewGen' or new generation coal.
 
"So-called 'carbon capture and storage' technology remains a fiction with none of the four projects operating globally viable on a commercial basis.
 
"IEA head Nobuo Tanaka has warned that big question marks remain over 'clean coal' technology.
 
"The Rees government would do better to invest in proven renewable sources such as wind, solar and other forms of renewable generation and manage demand to reduce production of greenhouse gases from coal-fired power stations.
 
"Handing over the retail electricity sector to private industry will seriously undermine efforts to better manage demand, while selling trading rights to the private sector will reinforce the business as usual message.
 
"Future generations will need more than empty spin from politicians and industry bodies that are prepared to place profits above the future of the planet.
 
"The sale and lease of electricity management to the private sector will be a glaring lost opportunity of the Rees government in the eyes of future generations," Dr Kaye said.
 
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455