UK government and BBC employee Roger Harrabin can't tell the truth about increased coal use by UK and Europe, that coal use was encouraged by Europe's failed Emissions Trading System. Harrabin's 'reporting' consists of blaming the US for everything

5/29/13, "Cheap coal 'threatens UK pollution targets'," BBC, by Roger Harrabin

"Coal on the global market is so cheap that it threatens government attempts to tackle climate change, the chairman of the Environment Agency has warned.

Lord Smith says the UK’s share of electricity generated by coal is up to a third – the highest since 1996. Unless this trend is curbed, he says, the UK will miss its targets on curbing climate change and sulphur pollution. 

The price of coal has been driven down by the dash for shale gas in the US.

Gas is much less polluting than coal, so carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have fallen in the US. But European power generators have gobbled up the resulting cheap coal, driving carbon emissions up in several nations."...

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First 2 sources below, increased coal use in Europe is largely due to mechanisms of Europe's now failed Emissions Trading System (ETS). UK has additional problem that an ancillary political deal has caused higher natural gas prices (source 2 below):

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New coal plant building was encouraged by EU's now failed cap and trade system:

2/27/12, “Beyond Cap and Trade: A New Path to Clean Energy” Yale 360, by Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger

"And yet, the European Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), which has been in place for almost a decade now and has established carbon prices well above those that would have been established by the proposed U.S. system, has had no discernible impact on European emissions.

The carbon intensity of the European economy has not declined at all since the imposition of the ETS. Meanwhile green paragon Germany has embarked upon a coal-building binge under the auspices of the ETS, one that has accelerated since the Germans shut down their nuclear power plants."...

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Price of EU's now failed 'carbon permits' encouraged coal use, and countries need something to power them 'when wind isn't blowing and sun doesn't shine':

11/29/12, "Countries Worldwide Propose to Build 1,200 New Coal Plants," Institute for Energy Research

"In the United Kingdom, for example, coal consumption increased by nearly a quarter between the second quarter of 2011 and the second quarter of 2012. Germany is encouraging the construction of 10 gigawatts of coal-fired generation to replace its nuclear plants and provide back-up power for its wind and solar units, which require backup 

when the wind isn’t blowing or when the sun does not shine.

Europe overall burned more coal in the past year than any time since it pledged cuts to greenhouse gas emissions. Besides coal’s low cost, the price of carbon permits in Europe is also very low due to their large supply and low demand, making coal an economic choice for electricity generation.[iii] Natural gas prices in Europe are high because of politically expedient deals that coupled the price of Russian gas imports to the price of oil.  In contrast, the shale gas boom in the United States decoupled oil and gas prices, driving natural gas down to near record levels.[iv]...

According to Milton Catelin, chief executive of the World Coal Association, global coal use is likely to continue to increase, and could help to lift people out of poverty. China and India are planning to use coal to do just that. According to the International Energy Agency, coal consumption has increased by 8.4 percent in the developing countries. Other countries see coal as an economic choice with both Germany and the United Kingdom increasing its use. Unfortunately, for Americans – with the largest supplies of coal in the world — new and onerous regulations are forcing the coal industry to lose share in the U.S. electric generation sector, reduce its consumption, and force many Americans into unemployment.  

Other countries are using coal to lift their citizens out of poverty, while the United States is impoverishing its people by criminalizing the use of coal." 

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China's massive CO2 increases render the rest of the world's reductions meaningless. Global CO2 increased from 2005-2011 because China was up 60%, North America and Europe lowered CO2:

5/8/13, "Jack Mintz: Canada unfairly Gored," Financial Post opinion  

"It makes little sense for advanced countries to take on policies that hurt their own economic growth if environmental benefits are unattainable.

Such failure seems to be the case with China, Russia and others where carbon emissions are sharply on the rise. It is almost as if the Western countries are digging ditches, only to see them filled up by emerging countries following up from behind."

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1/29/13, "China Uses Nearly as Much Coal as Rest of World Combined, EIA Says," Wall St. Journal, Cassandra Sweet

"China's use of coal has grown quickly over the last decade and now rivals the amount of coal consumed by the rest of the world combined, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said Tuesday.... 

China was also the world's largest coal producer in 2011, producing more than 3.5 billion metric tons, or nearly 46% of global coal production that year, according to data published by the International Energy Agency. China was also the world's largest net importer of coal in 2011, importing about 177 million metric tons of coal, according to the IEA.

The U.S. produced a little more than one billion metric tons of coal in 2011, or nearly 13% of the world supply, according to the IEA.

Global demand for coal has grown by about 2.9 billion short tons, or 2.6 billion metric tons, since 2000, with 82% of that demand growth in China, the EIA said."... 

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May 2012 Washington Post on China CO2:
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"China was the biggest contributor (in 2011), with carbon dioxide output growing 9.3 percent." (3rd parag.)

5/25/12, "U.S. cut its carbon emissions in 2011 — but China erased the gains," Washington Post, Brad Plumer
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More on China emissions:

 

April 2011, "Air Pollution in China, Facts and Details," Jeffrey Hays

"The Japanese professor Fumitaka Yanagisawa said that when he presented a paper at a Chinese university that suggested some pollution in Japan originated in China he was booed by the audience and said “even now it’s sort of taboo to mention cross-border pollution when I’m invited to give a speech in China.” Reiko Sodeno, of the Japanese environmental ministry, told AFP, “It will have adverse affects if we push China too much on cross-border pollution...Blaming other countries wouldn’t help to solve the problem, as it only hurts national pride.”"...(see sub-heading, 'Chinese air pollution goes abroad')

"Soot, dust and chemical pollutants from China have been captured in a weather observation stations on the summit of Mount Bachelor in Cascade Range in Oregon. Soot, dust, ozone and nitrous oxides can be detected by satellites moving across the Pacific." (see sub-head, 'Chinese air pollution reaches the United States')

"Electricity prices in China are half of those in developed countries."...(under sub-head, 'Cleaning up air pollution in China').

"Even if China increased the efficiency of its coal burning power plants, it wouldn't make much of difference because so many small industries and households burn coal for heating, cooking and power."...(sub-head, 'Success and limitations in cleaning up air pollution in China')."...
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Europe's carbon trading system didn't cut CO2:
 
11/23/11, "Europe's $287 billion carbon 'waste': UBS report," The Australian, by Sid Maher
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"SWISS banking giant UBS says the European Union's emissions trading scheme has cost the continent's consumers $287 billion for "almost zero impact" on cutting carbon emissions."...EU CO2 trading provided "windfall profits" to participants paid for by "electricity customers.""

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