Judge a energy reasonable use, to judge from the angle of economics, cheap usually means that the efficiency maximum cost reduction. Really let the coal from the stage of history, only the energy competition.
The British government recently closed in the last deep coal mine. The mine is in fact does not make money, because the club is a British pension fund, for the protection of employment is hard to support. This year the government does not want to continue to subsidize the mine, go to the end of history. A lot of media in tribute, said with emotion this is the ending of an era.
Britain led the industrial civilization, we do have reason to call the coal civilization. Before the industrial revolution, human energy sources are almost human muscle and livestock.
Coal is the first human large-scale use of fossil energy, it has the advantages of obviously: a high calorific value, to two times with the quality of the wood. It is convenient for transportation and storage, as long as the combustion can be preserved for a long time. Very rich coal reserves, in accordance with the current human exploitation, the total amount of coal mining the earth enough for hundreds of years. The value of coal mine can usually maintain dozens or even hundreds of years. The British took the lead in coal mining, the black feed steam boiler, the first to enter the modernization drive the country.
The coal is now regarded as a dirty and messy backward energy. In fact the beginning, it is the standard of clean energy. Wood manufacturing house space, smoke and garbage, very troublesome. Coal pollution, but can bear, it does not need vigil Tim wood, produced only small amounts of waste, called a friend in the housewife. In the coal industry, transportation, storage, the calorific value is far better than wood, the value is much cheaper. A coal shine, wood out of the stage of history, the forest rapid decreasing trend was stopped. The coal that human living environment become better, but not the opposite, this is a lot of people can not imagine.
The British closed coal mine, we can also draw in addition to the memory. China is the world's largest coal production and consumption, which is the driving force of economic development. Many people think that the developed countries use a large amount of oil, Chinese coal energy also accounted for a large proportion, is a disgrace. Coal is the backward energy, as soon as possible should be eliminated, senior oil and natural gas, even as France as 80% of the energy use of nuclear energy. Desire is good, but there are a lot of unreality.
Any resource is a substitute. The rational use of energy is not a judgment, energy efficiency, clean degree, but to judge from the angle of economics. Cheap usually means efficiency, reduce the cost. Oil discovered very early on, and use it later to the middle of the 20th century to become the overlord of the energy; shale gas is very clean, the mining cost is very high; nuclear power is also very promising, is considered to represent the world's energy future -- in many areas is distant water puzzled thirst. The energy selected by the level of economic development, specifically to see the price. It is also well understood, all energy is inexhaustible. When the acquisition cost is high enough, it replaced the other energy.
Really let the coal from the stage of history, only the energy competition. Lower oil prices, France, Japan and China Taiwan for many years before the closure of coal mines, the German government also announced 2018 will be the closure of coal mines. This is just a part of most countries still rely on coal. The British closed last deep coal mine, still retains some of the open pit coal mine, nearly a third of power still rely on coal, almost from cheap coal imports. Coal accounted for only third of the energy structure in the United States, this is the result of the competition of energy. Chinese rich in coal reserves, the price is cheap, the long term will be the main. China's energy structure to upgrade, the hope in the world energy pattern reversal, also want to ensure that economic development and use of new energy sources become cost-effective. From the perspective of resource competition, the current coal protection policy is not necessary. Perhaps in the near future, coal resources will be eliminated, the protection has become a waste.