Environment 135-year-long streak is over: US renewable sources topped coal in 2019

tom_mai78101

The Helper Connoisseur / Ex-MineCraft Host
Staff member
Reaction score
1,602
Two weeks ago, we covered a US Energy Information Administration (EIA) projection that renewable wind, solar, and hydroelectric power would top coal for total electricity generation in 2020. That was particularly believable given that renewables had beat coal in daily generation every day going back to March 24. As it happens, that daily streak finally came to an end this week, as coal picked up amid rising demand and a couple of low days for wind. Coal likely topped renewables on Tuesday, although it’s possible that rooftop solar generation (not included in EIA’s daily data) extended the run until Wednesday.

But the EIA also released some numbers Thursday that highlight a related and interesting piece of trivia: if you include energy use beyond the electric sector and all types of renewable energy, renewables actually beat out coal last year. And to find the last time that was true, you have to go all the way back to the 1880s.

This comparison includes biofuels (like ethanol and biodiesel), wood-burning, and waste incineration or landfill gas. And beyond electricity, it adds in energy used by industry, residential and commercial buildings, and transportation—uses where coal plays little or no role.

To get coal burned in an industrial process to stack up fairly against electrons pushed by a solar photovoltaic panel, EIA converts everything to BTUs. That’s easy for anything that combusts—it’s the heat produced. For wind, hydroelectric, and solar, kilowatt-hours of electricity are converted to BTUs of heat based on the current average heat-to-electricity ratio of all combustion power plants. (In other words, it’s the average amount of combustible fuels that would be required to produce the same amount of electricity.)

 
Last edited by a moderator:
General chit-chat
Help Users
  • No one is chatting at the moment.
  • Varine Varine:
    And our actual cooks aren't really trained for that. Our line lead will be fine but our tournant is still kind of struggling with some things and he takes mistakes way too hard. I got onto him about scorching pans when making cream sauces and he started fucking everything else up, like dude it's fine just turn your heat down a bit. And then he burned like three batches of couscous in a row and it's like man
  • Varine Varine:
    He walked away from the first batch, learned nothing and walked away from the second batch, and then tried to toast it in a saute pan made out of aluminum so it scorched immediately and then I took away and he was sad all day
    +1
  • Varine Varine:
    I know our range sucks but it's still a fucking fire down there, I've never measured it but I'm sure it's like a couple thousand degrees.
    +1
  • The Helper The Helper:
    I wish I had a flat top grill in my kitchen!
  • jonas jonas:
    I wish I could cook asian dishes :D
  • The Helper The Helper:
    You just need a pressure cooker like an instapot for the asian dishes
  • The Helper The Helper:
    they make that stuff easy
  • The Helper The Helper:
    and there is a flat top grill I can buy that will work on my stovetop but it is pricey
  • The Helper The Helper:
    and I have no room for that anyway
  • Varine Varine:
    I have a thing that goes over two burners for my house, but it doesn't work great. I think they make ones that plug in where the coils go but it's not cheap.
  • Varine Varine:
    And yeah if you have a pressure cooker you can do lots of stuff really fast. Depending on what you're trying to do it ranges from really easy to really hard
  • Varine Varine:
    If you want to make tonkotsu broth, you're gonna have a rough time, but if you want to do like stir fries or something that tends to be pretty easy
    +1
  • Varine Varine:
    Ingredients are sometimes hard to find though, which is why we're doing 'fusion'. We don't have wok burners either, so it'll be kind of a weird transition
    +1
  • The Helper The Helper:
    Added another slow cooker recipe - this time a dessert - Slow Cooker Fried Apples https://www.thehelper.net/threads/recipe-slow-cooker-cracker-barrel-fried-apples.192860/
  • Varine Varine:
    I have three teenagers apply for college that all asked for letters of recommendation with like two days notice lol. Like I get it guys, and I'm happy to help, but maybe tell me you need it before you need to turn these applications in?
  • Varine Varine:
    I guess they are literal children, so not exactly the best at thinking ahead. Fucking kids
  • The Helper The Helper:
    Yeah they are just inexperienced and young
  • jonas jonas:
    I'm still horrible at that :eek: often forget things or do things on the last minute
  • The Helper The Helper:
    My daughter is same way
  • The Helper The Helper:
    Happy Saturday people!!!
  • The Helper The Helper:
    I am sure nobody cares but I am seriously considering taking the Gaming News forum and just changing it to General Gaming Discussion since I post so much about gaming in the General Discussion Forum
  • The Helper The Helper:
    guests online 487 at 12:30 and none of them show up on the stats - all bots man
  • The Helper The Helper:
    Latest recipe is a great one - I love Philly Cheese and this is Philly Cheese Meatloaf https://www.thehelper.net/threads/recipe-philly-cheese-meatloaf.192935/
  • Ghan Ghan:
    Beep boop
    +2

      The Helper Discord

      Members online

      No members online now.

      Affiliates

      Hive Workshop NUON Dome World Editor Tutorials

      Network Sponsors

      Apex Steel Pipe - Buys and sells Steel Pipe.
      Top