Mike's Minute: Global boiling? Tell that to the world using coal

There was no shortage of irony on Friday as UN boss Antonio Guterres, who might just suffer from a dose of alarmism, was declaring global boiling. It was also announced by the International Energy Agency that the world this year is using more coal than ever, and there are no real signs of that changing. Guterres says a lot of alarmist stuff and my fear is that this sort of language turns people off. Yes, it is hot in the Northern Hemisphere and yes, records are being set. But the coverage is alarmist in and of itself. Not all of Europe is melting and not all of North America is melting. In places, it is hopelessly hot. But by declaring global boiling you are wandering into the world of hyperbole, not constructive dialogue. By the way, it was also announced last week that as far as emissions go New Zealand is actually doing quite well. We are, in fact, bending the curve, more so in fact than we ever have, bar the time when the country was locked down for Covid. So, here is the point - if we are seeing our emissions drop, are we seeing, or will we see, any real difference in the global temperature? No we won't. So, the old question arises - what's the point? Part of the point is to be seen to be doing our bit. But part of the debate is to at least look at why the world is using more coal, and the IEA gave us the answer, as if we didn’t know it. Coal is available, more available than gas and other alternatives. Speaking of gas, on Friday in Victoria, Australia they announced new homes won't be able to connect to gas anymore. Which is fine, as long as there are other reliable means. The word reliable is the key. Australia has resource issues outside of coal. They refuse to go nuclear, they don’t really have hydro and clearly they are off gas. So then what? Sun? Wind? Wave? None of it is reliable and South Australia has, and is, proving that. The usage stats don’t lie - the whole world has not replaced coal. We can talk all we want about alternatives but until they are a hell of a lot more plentiful and reliable than they currently are, guess what? Coal use will grow and people like Guterres will be combusting in inflammatory language, not to mention frustration.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.