United Kingdom Becomes the First Major Economy to End Coal Power
Clare Dueweke
Staff Writer
On Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, Reuters reported that the United Kingdom (UK) will close its last surviving coal power plant, Radcliffe-on-Solar, located in England’s midlands. This closure is not only a monumental step for the historically coal-dependent UK, but it also sets the precedent for other G7 economically dominant countries to invest more serious efforts into turning away from coal power and towards renewable energy such as wind, solar, and water power.
In 1882, the UK opened its first coal power plant and since then, the country has burned through over 4.6bn tons of coal and, in the process, emitted nearly 10.4bn tons of carbon dioxide, according to The Guardian. For nearly 142 years, and especially in the 20th century, the UK symbolized the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution through their production of steel and iron. Now in the modern day, the UK has shifted away from its past and towards the future.
Coal releases extensive amounts of CO2 when burned and because of this, it is considered one of the “dirtiest” fossil fuels. When coal is formed, it is often within swamps which places the organic matter under intense pressure and heat. Other fossil fuels, like natural gas and oil, are made of the same organic material; however, they form in the ocean, where they are not subject to nearly as much pressure and heat according to Climate Portal. For this reason, coal releases more trapped carbon than any other fossil fuel, contributing to the greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere. Acting like a blanket, these gases trap heat gradually warming the planet and causing extreme weather, melting ice caps, extinction, and other damage known as climate change.
Carbon Brief reports that Belgium, Sweden, Portugal, and Austria have also completely phased out coal power production, making the UK the fifth European country to join the ranks of a coal-free country. What makes the UK so important is that they were the first major G7 economy to phase out coal completely. G7 is an unofficial grouping of economically dominant countries in the world. These countries consist of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. With the UK being the first major economy to phase out coal, it sets the precedent that other economic powers can and should do the same.
The UK has worked hard to reach this step in the process of going green. According to BBC News, the UK was one of the first G7 countries that started leaning away from coal in the 1990s. When 2008 rolled around, the UK passed the Climate Change Act, which included a legally binding target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent below levels from the 1990s. In 2012, coal still generated nearly 39 percent of the UK’s power, and in 2015, the UK announced that it would completely end the use of coal power within the next decade.
Currently, G7 countries, including the UK, have the goal of phasing out existing unabated coal power by 2030 and reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 according to IISD.
Many have pointed to the fact that job loss in the coal industry may come out of these closures, however, according to The New York Times, the nearly 154 workers at Ratcliffe welcomed the closure and found jobs elsewhere and in other projects. The company that ran the plant, Uniper, even offered job training and severance packages, proving that jobs can be transferred rather than lost.
The world of power is changing rapidly, and with new science, renewable resources, and technology, countries can invest time, effort, and money into saving the planet. The UK has taken the first step towards going green, and now the world must wait to see which country will come next.
Image courtesy of Getty Images
