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Regarding coal as being environmentally unfriendly, I think we need to evaluate new coal energy generation based on today's technology, not yesterday's. Today's clean coal technologies render all resulting emissions benign, except of course for CO2. And despite the environmental and political propaganda toward CO2 being THE major cause of global climate change, the amounts of CO2 put into the atmosphere from new coal plants would still be fractional compared to CO2 emissions from all other sources (most of which are natural e.g. mammal exhalation, plant degradation, volcanic activity). And regarding the temporary ecosystem disruptions from mining operations, go visit a reclaimed strip mine and see if you can spot any real environmental degradation compared to unmined surrounding areas. <br /> <br />Regarding wind power, it will never be even close to being a major source of energy, because there is no place on this planet where wind blows 24/7/365. Even the windiest places on earth only blow 30% of the time. It is simply not true to say that wind can provide 20% of the earth's energy needs. The only way wind power can be included in a standard energy grid is for "backup" sources (e.g. hydro, coal, nuclear) instantly available for peak energy demand when the wind isn't blowing (which is most of the time), or for viable energy storage systems to store the wind energy for when it's needed most. Regarding the former, it does beg the observation: If the "backup" energy sources have excess capcity to begin with in order to make up for what wind power lacks, wouldn't it make more sense just to max the energy output from them instead of spending extra capital for the intermittent energy source?
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