Scottish Government must say 'no' to unabated coal

Published on Sunday 1 February 2009 20:00

In his letter to Alex Salmond (your report, 31 January), Dr Jim Hansen is absolutely right to suggest that "alternative approaches must be considered which ensure an effective moratorium on new unabated coal power".

The Scottish Government can take such an alternative approach by requiring all new coal plants in Scotland to conform to an emissions performance standard allowing them to emit a maximum of 350g of per kWh of electricity produced. This would rule out any coal plant without fully operational carbon capture and storage.

Scottish ministers are considering their planning guidance on this issue right now. They have the perfect opportunity to ensure that they do not lock Scotland into a carbon-intensive future, a path towards dangerous climate change and the tipping point that Dr Hansen mentions.

They can also set an example to China, India and other countries in doing so. Hundreds of millions of people in some of the world's poorest countries are already feeling the devastating effects of climate change. The Scottish Government must take its global responsibilities seriously and say "no" to unabated coal.

LIZ MURRAY

World Development Movement

Rose St

Edinburgh

You credit Dr Jim Hansen with being "one of the world's leading climate change experts", but it might be more balanced to point out that he was the author of the infamous "hockey stick" graph of supposed temperatures, which is now utterly discredited, and that his former supervisor at Nasa recently stated that he embarrassed that organisation with his alarmist claims.

ANDREW DUFFIN

Barganock Road

Kirkmichael, Ayrshire