Putting lipstick on the coal pig

onFeb 9, 2009 @ 17:04 PST

When people argue that the use of coal and other fossil fuels is still cheaper than renewable energy they usually (and conveniently) fail to mention the external costs of fossil fuels that aren’t factored into the price of burning of these dirty fuels.

On the Wall Street Journal’s Environment Capital blog today there’s a great post explaining how:

“… fossil fuels remain cheaper because not all their costs are tallied—and that means pollution. Traditional power plants spew particulates into the air as well as carbon dioxide, but historically the cost of that pollution was not included in the pricetag for, say, operating a coal-fired plant.”

Read the entire WSJ post here: AC/DC: What’s the True Cost of Electricity?

This month we’re giving away FREE copies Nobel Laureate Dr. Andrew Weaver’s new book Keeping Our Cool: Canada in a Warming World.

Go here to find out more details about DeSmogBlog’s monthly book give-away.

By Page van der Linden

Analysis

Q&A: Amy Westervelt on the Corporate Poisoning of the Information Aquifer — and How to Undo the Harm

ByMatthew Green

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The acclaimed climate accountability journalist says bold steps are needed to reverse the insidious impact of decades of industry propaganda on the public square.

Series: Holding the Advertising and Public Relations Industry Accountable for Greenwash and Climate Misinformation

Series: Advertising & PR Industry

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