The toughest and most important job in politics
There has been a lot written in the Goulburn Post recently extolling the virtues of renewables, attacking coal and particularly attacking Angus Taylor.
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As is often the case when it comes to climate change and renewables, people get emotional and truth is often the first casualty.
The thing is that we all agree that there is global warming, but it’s the magnitude that makes the difference and should determine our response to it.
However, even though global temperature increases attributable to CO2 have been revised downwards considerably our reaction locally and globally is being driven by heightened fears of alarmism making reasoned decision making and research almost impossible.
The fact is that when global warming was first perceived as a threat in the 1970s, the ‘science’ of the time estimated a doubling of atmospheric CO2 would result in global temperature increases of 5C – 6C. That was alarming.
There have been many downward revisions since and one of the more recent from James Hanson (Goddard Institute of Space Science) put it at 2.6C. You would think that would modify our reaction.
Additionally, Jack Bradley, a scientist at The Imperial College UK, has estimated, using spectroscopy, that a doubling of CO2 would increase global temperatures by just 0.33C. Why isn’t this research being followed up?
The point is, it appears we still don’t know exactly how much affect CO2, a trace gas, has on global temperatures. A comparison of the many temperature predictions against actual temperatures recorded shows that predictions exceed actual recordings and no satisfactory explanation has been given.
However, even though the magnitude of the threat is no where near as great as was first thought, we are still locked into an alarmist fear of ‘catastrophic climate change’.
There is a fear driven campaign of bullying, especially directed at politicians, into swearing allegiance to renewables, ‘or else’, making it politically impossible to question the facts without being called names.
Some are even calling for ‘climate scepticism’ to be classified as a crime. Why can’t ‘the green left answer the sceptics questions and explain ‘the science’ in detail.
This has resulted in the irrational and premature closure of coal fired power stations making it politically as well as economically impossible to build new ones, when clearly it seems we have time to keep coal fired power as well as building renewables after all. Consequently, power prices are escalating out of control.
The claim that renewables are cheaper than coal is false. Coal fired power generators are forced to pay the price of renewables by taxing their emissions. Under the RET, coal is discouraged and preference is given to renewables. Coal fired power stations need to operate for at least 90 percent of the time to remain efficient and profitable.
However, under the renewable energy target the preference given to renewables when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing means that coal fired generators are prevented from supplying power to the grid in those times and consequently being forced to operate at sub optimal production and economic levels.
Additionally coal fired generators are legislated to buy clean energy certificates from the renewable sector, which represents an extra 30 percent or so in costs. All up the renewable sector receives $2.8 billion in subsidies. All these costs are passed onto taxpayers and consumers which explains why electricity has become so expensive.
The criticism levelled at Angus Taylor is misplaced and unwarranted. Angus Taylor is the most qualified and experienced Member in Parliament to take on the portfolio as Minister for Energy. He has consulted widely with the energy sector in his previous life with Port Jackson partners. He is committed to restoring Australia’s position among the cheapest and most reliable producers of power in the world, using a mix of renewables including hydro, as well as coal and gas while simultaneously meeting our target under The Paris Agreement. We should be supporting him because Goulburn as well as the whole of Australia will benefit enormously through lower power prices, greater certainty of supply and the possibility of future investment in renewables.
It is the toughest and most important job in politics.
– Tony Morrison
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