Comments on: MIT: Dirty coal to blame for China pollution

In a rare independent study of China's energy sector, researchers have found that the problem with China's coal power generation is not that its power plants lack cleaner technology.

[pauljweighell]

and what about the massive US coal consumption as a comparison?

[bemenaker]

China burns far more coal than we do.

[William Crow]

The USA should quit sending any coal to China. Or any other country. Its either heat homes and runs businesses so people can get paid and buy food, or save the world.

I say save the world from self destruction! From my understanding we only have a few more years before "its too late." I believe.

[gwbstr]

Thanks for the comments. The key here is that the coal burned in China (which is a lot more than the U.S., according to the EU http://www.energy.eu/stats/energy-coal-consumption.html ) is frequently a kind of coal that has more harmful contents than U.S. coal. I've heard one expert (speaking in an off the record event, so I can't say who) say that China's coal imports aren't necessarily a bad thing, since the imported coal is cleaner. The expert also explained that most of China's coal imports are not from the U.S., but from regional sources in Southeast Asia or Australia.

I don't claim to be able to analyze this fully, but food for thought.

Graham/Sinobyte

[robwill53]

the US has really focuseed on mining and burning clean coal. Same with oil. If you have ever heard the term "light, sweet crude" used in describing oil it refers to the cleanest grade of oil, which is what the US and most developed nations prefer. The problem is that the crap still has to go somewhere so it goes to developing nations. This helps our local air quality but does nothing for the global problem.

[enviroguy_ca]

There is a company named CMS out of canada. they have developed solutions for the Sulfur, Mercury and currently CO2 emmisions (Coal plants). The key to their design is to capture the CO2 as a solid "Not a Liquid". They are in South America, China, Canada and now USA. The capture is proven, the scale is now what is being developed. From what I have seen and read this will be the future of the emmision reduction problems.