Canada formally withdraws from Kyoto Protocol

[Neil]

How did you manage that?

they don't subsidize oil production, maybe?  Seriously, why give oil companies money (or tax breaks) when that money could be diverted to encourage clean energy research?  This is beyond me that a right-wing government would still be doing that.  The Liberals, I understand.  But the Cons?

Why would we do that?  Oil is far more useful than 'clean energy'.  We want oil companies to be bringing as much oil out of those sands as possible, and climate change is pretty much irrelevant.  It'll be fun to see things change, and then change back.

[Berkut]

And if I recall correctly, due to the US not ratifying, and the developing world not having any restrictions put on it, Canada was one of the only countries in the world that would actually be required to make any cuts whatsoever.  Europe was saved because 1990 nicely co-incided with the collapse of communism and they were able to just close down a bunch of highly inefficient eastern european factories.

Where's this country called Europe, pray tell? I only know about a continent with that name.

So tell me - has any European country done anything of substance to reduce greenhouse emissions, or are they just using credits from eastern europe?

All those windmills they've been installing all over Spain in the last couple of decades must be there just so people can tilt at them, then.

If installing windmills is what gets you on the 'Yeah, we are so green!' list the USA is all set.

[Neil]

Americans need not apply.

[jimmy olsen]

Why don't we use a lot more natural gas? It's clean and we have a ridiculous amount of it. Serious question.

Don't the same companies that drill for oil also drill for natural gas?

[The Brain]

Why don't we use a lot more natural gas? It's clean and we have a ridiculous amount of it. Serious question.

Don't the same companies that drill for oil also drill for natural gas?

Oil is just as natural.

[Richard Hakluyt]

Why don't we use a lot more natural gas? It's clean and we have a ridiculous amount of it. Serious question.

Don't the same companies that drill for oil also drill for natural gas?

I think the main reason is that gas is simply harder to move around and requires even more expensive infrastructure than oil. But it is much cleaner than coal and oil, gas-fired power stations are probably the best green way forward in the medium term.

[Monoriu]

In HK, we are reluctant to move to natural gas fully because this requires a substantial capital investment, which will lead to increased electricity prices.  The power companies have the technology and capital to do it easily.  The problem is that the working class families can't afford the price increase afterwards. 

[The Larch]

And if I recall correctly, due to the US not ratifying, and the developing world not having any restrictions put on it, Canada was one of the only countries in the world that would actually be required to make any cuts whatsoever.  Europe was saved because 1990 nicely co-incided with the collapse of communism and they were able to just close down a bunch of highly inefficient eastern european factories.

Where's this country called Europe, pray tell? I only know about a continent with that name.

So tell me - has any European country done anything of substance to reduce greenhouse emissions, or are they just using credits from eastern europe?

All those windmills they've been installing all over Spain in the last couple of decades must be there just so people can tilt at them, then.

If installing windmills is what gets you on the 'Yeah, we are so green!' list the USA is all set.

Flippancy notwhitstanding, making a significative effort to improve the environmental performance in terms of CO2 emissions of energy production is one of the biggest areas of work in the fight against climate change. That's why nuclear energy has been so touted as the main solution in that sense in the last pre-Fukushima years, and why natural gas is slowly replacing oil and coal for energy production.

[Admiral Yi]

I think the main reason is that gas is simply harder to move around and requires even more expensive infrastructure than oil.

This is my understanding.  You have to cool it (and keep it cool?) so that it liquifies and can be transported.  That's why most places that produce natural gas as a by product of oil drilling just flare it off.  Those are the flames you see at the topps of oil rigs.

[viper37]

Why would we do that? 

I knew you were a commie.  Subsidizing private corporations is against economic liberalism.  We take money from the poor and give it to the rich.  And in this case, we give them money so they can pollute even more.  Wich is silly.  You don't give government grant to incite to bad behavior.

[viper37]

Why don't we use a lot more natural gas? It's clean and we have a ridiculous amount of it. Serious question.

It's not clean.  It's cleaner than coal and cleaner than oil for sure, but it's not clean.  And there can be other problems with the drilling process, apparently, though I remain unconvinced.

The best process would to be use gaz for heating, hydro/nuclear/windmill electricity for everything else.  Electric cars in big city would be nice too.  A tax reduction would be ok for the new buyers.

[Maximus]

I think the main reason is that gas is simply harder to move around and requires even more expensive infrastructure than oil.

This is my understanding.  You have to cool it (and keep it cool?) so that it liquifies and can be transported.  That's why most places that produce natural gas as a by product of oil drilling just flare it off.  Those are the flames you see at the topps of oil rigs.

It can be shipped through a pipeline as a gas. It just requires a separate pipeline network from oil. In places where oil is still hauled away from the well by truck you're probably right. I'm not sure if there are still places like that in this country.

Where I grew up the flares were burning off "sour gas" (gas containing dihydrogen sulfide) which is highly toxic and not safe to pipe into buildings. Even there there was a movement 10 years ago or so to eliminate these and use the gas for electric generation. I don't know how that has progressed since.