Tag: coal

Germany – energy vs. the environment

Lützerath and Garzweiler coal mine

Back in 2021 Germany was celebrating the election of a new coalition government (which includes the Green party) and hopes were high for a new era of environmental action. But now, Germany, like much of Europe, is struggling with energy supply issues due to the war on Ukraine. As a result, it looks extremely likely that climate policies will fall, as short term solutions for this more immediate issue take priority. A small town called Lützerath has become a key site in this battle between energy and the environment…

Ban The Bomb (the Carbon Bomb that is)

Carbon Bombs

‘Carbon bomb’? That doesn’t sound good… The term carbon bomb has been in use for years, describing large sources of carbon, most commonly fossil fuel projects. Now, new research led by the University of Leeds, has defined the term as applying to projects that have the potential to emit at least 1 billion tonnes (1Gt) of carbon over their lifetime. To give you an idea of exactly how scary that is – 1 billion tonnes is about 3 times the total annual emissions of the UK. Global carbon emissions are currently around 35 billion tonnes a year.