There’s a historic transition underway in the US electricity sector, 随着煤电让位给新能源, 清洁技术.
But exactly how rapid and dramatic has the transition been—and what’s going to happen in the next few years?
The share of US electricity coming from coal fell from 51 percent in 2008 to 31 percent in 2016—an unprecedented change. 新的UCS分析发现, 剩下的煤单位, roughly one in four plans to retire or convert to natural gas; another 17 percent are uneconomic and could face retirement soon.
燃煤电厂的关闭引发了复杂的问题. 同时对公众健康大有裨益, closures also raise concerns about jobs and the local tax base for surrounding communities. 我们的 社区快照 document these and other challenges, underscoring the need for a fair and thoughtful transition.
然后对. 现在
2008年至2016年间，美国17%的煤炭产能退役. 另有4%转化为其他燃料，主要是天然气.
这些关闭导致:
- 二氧化硫是酸雨的来源，
- 氮氧化物是雾霾的关键成分，
- 减少34%的二氧化碳，一种吸热气体.
不幸的是, an increase in natural gas-fired generation over that time has partly undermined emissions reductions, 尤其是二氧化碳.
The number of people living near an operating coal plant (within 3 miles) has plummeted, 从8点开始.从2008年的500万到300万.2016年300万.
Market forces have been the primary driver behind the transition, especially cheap natural gas. 可再生能源成本的下降也起到了一定作用: 最近的成本比较 show that new 风能和太阳能 are 现在 cheaper than new fossil fuel plants, even without subsidies.
展望未来
从煤炭的过渡几乎肯定会继续下去. Utilities are already planning to retire another 13 percent of the nation’s coal generating capacity. An additional 5 percent will either retire or convert to natural gas.
除了那些已经计划退休或转换的人， 还有20% of 2016 coal generating capacity is uneconomic compared to existing natural gas. That represents 17 percent of the coal units that were operating at the end of 2016.
我们的 colleagues at the Southern Alliance for Clean 能源 make the case that 风能和太阳能 are a viable alternative for some of these uneconomic coal plants in the Southeast.
我们的 analysis also found a significant number of units on the line between competitive and un-competitive. Even a slight increase in their costs—or a slight decrease in the cost of competing technologies—could make them uneconomic.
在地上
当燃煤电厂关闭时会发生什么? 答案总是“视情况而定”.我们的案例研究可以在上面找到 全屏显示, illustrate the different hardships—and opportunities—that arise when communities transition away from coal.
- 一个废弃的煤电厂 在兰辛, 密歇根, sat empty for years until an insurance company repurposed it to serve as their LEED-certified headquarters
- 臭名昭著的脏工厂 在从事了多年的社区活动后退休了, 只是为了揭露新的和持续的污染问题
- The different perspectives of regulators, industry, and concerned citizens are well illustrated in 北卡罗来纳州不经济的罗克斯伯勒工厂
- 一组在西弗吉尼亚州农村 is helping young people and former coal workers develop and apply their skills in agriculture, 建设, 甚至还有太阳能.
随着越来越多的燃煤电厂关闭, the importance of investing in these and other impacted communities will only grow. Policy makers should prioritize economic development and job transition assistance, alongside other investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency.
有617888九五至尊娱乐? 播客
Dr. 杰里米·理查森, 忧思617888九五至尊娱乐家联盟的高级能源分析师, 讨论报告, talks to a number of innovators in his home state of West Virginia about how they are transitioning away from coal, and relays the experience of environmental justice advocates fighting to improve public health in their communities.
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