Why Coal’s biggest problem right now, is not renewables
There’s no doubt that coal has a legitimacy problem with large swathes of the public around the world. Once a darling of energy and still in relative abundant supplies, Coal provides significant levels of energy per gram consumed. Yet the end outcome is now known to be incredibly harmful to localised communities needing to breathe air filled with particulates, as well as the climate heating properties of its use. With renewable energy sources being positioned for rapid uptake, it’d be easy to think that Coal’s major problem is renewable energy alternatives. But if you’re in the coal Industry and thinking you need to hold the tide against renewables, you’re fighting the wrong tide
So let me go out on a limb here. The Coal sector’s biggest problem is not holding the tide against renewables – that link has already been established despite numerous Government’s policy changes and uncertainty. Instead, what is galvanising the ‘anti-coal’ proponents is an energy source much closer to the coal sector – fracking.
Coal seam gas extraction is quite frankly a pariah in energy. Around the world, the threats to land use, poisoning of water supplies, depletion of fresh water for townships and more, has heightened awareness of the need for alternatives to such a point, that movements once considered miles apart, have discovered a significant alliance and likeness. The ‘green’ and ‘farm’ goroups have been forged together to hold off fracking, to retain arable land, to allow farmers to manage their own land without the destructive and toxic chemicals utilised by the fracking industry potentially poisoning their farms forever.
This anti-fracking movement has provided the energy to significantly question the viability of developing new coal resources. Fracking is the weird relative at the family BBQ. No one really wants it but it turns up uninvited and with long term impacts unknown (but not likely to be beneficial).
That Coal seam gas exploration has not provided ANY benefits to consumers in New South Wales is well know with a state-wide price rise INCREASE of almost 20% being attributable directly to export of gas overseas. These price jumps have encouraged (even forced) consumers to seek out alternatives, and yet again, renewables, particularly solar, continue to benefit. And consumers now have a price point that even without feed in tariff payments, the cost of a solar system is at a level where many still proceed regardless. The CSG sector is actively working against any chance that coal might have led the drive to a managed draw down of it’s assets.
If existing coal players want to be able to find ways to maintain a business by having the lead time to develop cleaner options for coal, they need to focus on putting the racking sector back in pandora’s box. Until they do (and the longer they take to do so) the viability risks grow and community acceptance levels decline. Renewable energy is not Coal’s biggest problem – it’s CSG fracking.
Futurists often get asked things like ‘Okay then – who’s going to win the ‘flag’ this year’. In Melbourne Cup time most of my friends ring me asking for a hot tip. Given my consistent poor form at selecting a winner, why they would ask me is anyone’s guess (unless they are working out who…
Read More >Does your organisation suffer what Futurists call ‘Operational Sleepwalking’? That most organisations (and people) willingly sleepwalk their way into their futures is not all that surprising. What is surprising about that however is that those people and those organisations are: * Surprised when something unexpected (and not to their liking) happens and, * Claim they…
Read More >Maree Conway, of ‘University Futures’ has joined the Australian Strategic Planning Institute as a lead facilitator for the Institute’s programs. Maree’s experience in policy development, planning and strategy initiatives provides additional weight to the sessions on offer. TASPI now have three key facilitators that cover critical steps in the Strategic Planning Process – Enhanced Awareness…
Read More >The latest edition of Fast Thinking has hit the streets and includes another tool for those seeking to develop innovation and strategy. Marcus Barber explains how to use, what he calls an ‘iiBubble’, a process that helps capture an idea to see if it has innovation ‘legs’. As one of the tools unique to Barber…
Read More >Looking Up Feeling Good would like to wish the very talented and focused futurist, Sophie Barber a happy birthday today. Sophie’s amazing talent at suggesting the possible future for a positive outcome is a true inspiration and we look forward to many more insights as the complexity of challenges continues to test our understanding, commitment…
Read More >The CoreNet Global Melbourne 2007 Summit incorporated a thought provoking Hypothetical panel discussion on the future of corporate real estate and the drivers for sustainability. With an economic futures framework provided by Melbourne University Professor of Economics Neville Norman who moderated the discussion, the panel included Aggie Aitken, Head of Workplace Development at ANZ; Strategic…
Read More >Among other great articles, the winter 2007 edition of Fast Thinking magazine highlights the ‘8 Factor’ model for effective employee engagement, created by strategic futurist Marcus Barber. Using the model he shows how organisations can develop greater flexibility when it comes to providing incentives as a means for improving productivity and ensuring longevity for staff.…
Read More >Last night the ABC program ‘A Difference of Opinion’ looked at the issues of the housing affordability ciris. The panel provided some quality perspectives as to what was causing the challenge and what kind of actions might need to occur in order to address the issue with Ross Gittins’ early observation that the debate completely…
Read More >Dan Atkins, former manager of Environmental policy at Toyota and now Director of Sustainable Business Practises and Strategic Futurist Marcus Barber will speak at the South East Networks / VicUrban Business Breakfast at the Sandown Racecourse on Wednesday the 27th of June. Both Dan (who’ll discuss how Toyota applies its Environmental Policy in order to…
Read More >Looking Up Feeling Good’s advanced signals reporting service ‘Future Alerts’ is now available as a monthly subscription offering. Designed to provide your organisation with signals indicating potential change, each report comes with analysis of the signals and how they might impact your business. Applying some advanced Environmental Scanning process, including the ‘VSTEEP’ model, you can…
Read More >