Natural gas is often seen as the bridge fuel to a clean-energy futureits abundant, reliable, and has about half the emissions of coal. Today, a couple of reminders of just how tricky it can be to really make that gas-powered energy revolution a reality.
In California, state regulators are concerned that new emissions rules from the Environmental Protection Agency could actually retard the states efforts to clean up its energy mix, The Wall Street Journal reports today.
Hows that? California plans a massive increase in the use of renewable energy, such as wind and solar powerbut needs new natural-gas fired power plants as backup. New EPA rules on greenhouse-gas emissions from big emitterspower plants and the likewill now require permits for gas-fired plants. That could actually set back Californias green dreams, the paper reports:
In a Dec. 24 letter to the EPA, the California Energy Commission, which oversees energy policy in the state, said the EPA’s proposal “will likely retard, rather than facilitate,” reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions from its electricity sector.
Half a world away, Britain is doing its own gymnastics to meet two often irreconcilable goals: Cleaner energy and energy security. The U.K. is racing ahead with ambitious plans for offshore wind power; last Fridays offshore tender would provide enough clean energy, on paper, to supply one-quarter of British electricity needs.
But, as in California, all those wind farms require lots of new natural-gas plants to act as backup power. Unlike the U.S., most European countries arent awash in natural gasmost import it from Russia, Norway, or North Africa.
The U.K., in particular, is worried that its drive for cleaner energy, which will require more natural gas at least until wind farms and a new generation of nuclear plants are built, will actually undermine its energy security.
With variations, thats a theme that repeats itself across the Continent (as well as in the U.S), with three energy goals often at odds with each othercleaner energy, cheaper energy, and energy security.
Natural gas offers a seemingly easy way to tackle one of those challenges. That doesnt make it a silver bullet for all of them.