Energy growth is a dead end

…The utopian worldview that says the planet can sustain indefinite growth in energy production is grossly out of touch with the physical realities of the planet. There are very real limits to the supply of non-renewable fuels – fossil-based or uranium. At some point, perhaps not too distant, affordable supplies of non-renewable fuels will be gone. The concept of ‘peak oil’ has been common parlance in energy circles for years.

There are also social limits to the extraction of energy resources. While industry has gone to great lengths to mine the most inaccessible of these fuels, the Alberta tar sands, it comes at great ecological, human and financial cost. It is overly optimistic to assume society will continue to turn a blind eye to the destruction left behind. As we have seen from the uranium mining controversy here, the social and environmental acceptability of exploiting that fuel is becoming increasingly marginal. Besides the sacrifice of ecosystems and human health, and contribution to global climatic stability, the long term exploitation of both tar sands and uranium will require serious infringement of the democratic rights of affected citizens.


In short, net growth in energy demand is a dead-end concept, as is the idea that pollution controls will deliver us from “poisoning ourselves and the environment.” The Irving refinery is a good example of the connection between growth and pollution. When the capacity of the refinery was doubled, pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (smog, acid rain) and carbon dioxide (global warming) also increased despite improved technology. Growth in production equals growth in pollution, even if emissions per unit of production are reduced through better technology. A second refinery will load up the airshed even more regardless of how high the legal standards. Only a zero-emissions refinery, which of course is an impossibility, could prevent that.

As for technological end-of-pipe solutions to pollution, while the scrubbers at Coleson Cove have made breathing in Saint John easier, compared to a low pollution fuel such as natural gas (still non-renewable), emissions from cheap petroleum coke fuel are still high. Further, pet coke combustion will result in a large increase in carbon dioxide emissions (greenhouse gases) which contribute to global warming.

Telegraph Journal