August 13, 2022 2.24 pm This story is over 19 months old

Ric Metcalfe: Coal is the dirtiest of all green house gases

This is no time for complacency

Avatar photo
By City of Lincoln Council Leader

I was amazed to read Lincolnshire County Councillor Colin Davie’s comments in The Lincolnite this week making the case for retaining coal as an energy source.

Coal is the dirtiest of all the green house gases, which is why even the present government has committed to phase out coal power completely by 2024 and driving forward power generation based on renewables with a decarbonised power system by 2035.

The development of wind and solar power means that clean energy is now cheaper than coal generation in most countries, and the cost of new coal based energy plants is well above the cost of new wind and solar farms.

Sustainable non-carbon sources of energy are essential to tackle global warming, and just as essential for hard pressed consumers who are currently paying far more than they need to for their energy use.

District councils in Lincolnshire are already supporting low income households with the Home Energy Upgrade scheme to help them insulate their homes and install low carbon heating for the coming winter. 

This is no time for complacency. The rapid acceleration of global warming is evident to everyone just now, and the time for prevarication is over.

There is no contradiction between tackling global warming and making sure that we can all pay our energy bills.

Also read: Colin Davie – Energy crisis means carbon neutral targets will be missed

Councillor Ric Metcalfe is the Labour Leader of the City of Lincoln Council.