Rising Renewables

Canary Media: “Chart: Wind and solar overtook coal on the US grid in 2024.” As a first for the America, the combination of wind + solar at 17% generated more electricity than coal at 15% for the first 11 months of 2024. The chart shows the irreversible + dramatic decline of coal from 51% at the turn of the century. “Coal power is the single largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions from the power sector, but it’s been in decline in the U.S. for more than two decades as both fossil gas and renewables have surged.” Ten US states now generate half or more of their electricity from renewables, led by Iowa + South Dakota with abundant wind power. “In the first six months of this year, the European Union generated more electricity from solar and wind than from coal and gas combined.” And in UK, the birthplace the commercial use of coal + of the subsequent industrial revolution, the fuel was eradicated when the country shuttered its last coal-fired power plant in September. “But coal still remains the largest source of electricity generation globally—it produced more than a third of electricity worldwide in 2023. And the world is still burning through more tons of coal than ever across all use-cases, which include processes like steelmaking.” In the US, five of the nation’s 10 largest coal plants have planned closure dates between 2028 and 2038, Inside Climate News reports. Experts expect all our coal plants to be shuttered by 2040, but sadly, ‘that’s not soon enough to meet global climate goals.’