Energy converstations/theories

[MrZayas1]

Hey guys, I just wanted to start a post to discuss a very hot topic in science; energy. Many scientists are debating about whether or not we should use coal power. Coal is dug out of the ground in vast quantities, and commonly using strip mining. Strip mining is the intentional mass clearing of land to extract minerals or ores. Coal is most commonly found in mountains, as the mountains in the past have undergone immense pressures, where coal is formed. Coal is formed by millions of years of compression of organic matter, where mostly everything is stripped away, except for the carbon. The burning of coal can cause massive amounts of health problems, it creates smog, which gives us acid rain. Acid rain contains a large amount of mercury, one of the most toxic substances known to man. Mercury falls into the ocean via acid rain, to be consumed by the fish we eat. So is the risk of coal worth it? Coal is a non-renewable resource, among many things, a lot of scientists ponder the global effect on the climate that burning coal creates. Tell me in the comments, whether coal is worth our time, or should we invest more money in renewable resources such as Nuclear power, Nuclear Fusion, Solar power, Wind power, etc! Can't wait to see what you come up with!

[vger]

Granted, this doesn't make a coal-powered civilization ideal, but have you heard of this?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clean_coal_technology

[dansmithers]

In a capitalist world, the standard environmentalist spiel of "be more efficient, and there'll be plenty to go around" just doesn't go. We are the consumers; we consume energy. The supplier does not tell us how much to consume, he adapts to our whims if he wants to survive.

For this reason, I support clean coal, advanced nuclear fission, and carbon capture.