{"id":222265,"date":"2022-10-05T11:53:28","date_gmt":"2022-10-05T09:53:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=222265"},"modified":"2022-10-05T11:53:32","modified_gmt":"2022-10-05T09:53:32","slug":"smh-australia-is-crucial-to-global-co2-reduction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=222265","title":{"rendered":"SMH: Australia is Crucial to Global CO2 Reduction"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Australia’s manufacturing decline. Source\u00a0Australian Government<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Essay by Eric Worrall<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Australia can save the world by manufacturing cheap goods using green hydrogen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Irrelevant to global decarbonisation? No, Australia\u2019s crucial to it<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peter Hartcher<\/a>
Political and international editor<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Coalition spent over a decade coaching Australia into a state of learnt helplessness over any action on climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of its most effective arguments was that Australia emitted only 1 per cent of all global greenhouse gases, so even if it eliminated all of them it wouldn\u2019t make a jot of difference. What was the point of trying?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In truth, Australia has the potential to make a cut to global emissions of 8 per cent, according to new research by the eminent economist Ross Garnaut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By what magical arithmetic can Australia eliminate 8 per cent of world emissions if it churns out only 1 per cent? By functioning as a major world supplier of zero-carbon goods and services which will allow the rest of the world, and China especially, to cut its emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the book\u2019s co-authors, ANU economics professor Ligang Song, says that \u201cusing Australian renewable electricity and hydrogen produced from renewables to convert [iron ore] into iron metal and steel would reduce global emissions by around 2 per cent \u2013 almost twice as much as Australia eliminating its own emissions\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026Read more: https:\/\/amp.smh.com.au\/politics\/federal\/irrelevant-to-global-decarbonisation-no-australia-s-crucial-to-it-20221003-p5bmnv.html<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Nobody to my knowledge has found a way to convert hideously expensive green hydrogen into competitively priced green steel and silicon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although hydrogen can in theory be used in place of coal to reduce ore into iron and silicon, in practice hydrogen is a bad substitute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In steel, hydrogen impurities in steel are a disaster, they cause hydrogen embrittlement<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hydrogen mixed with silicon is possibly even worse than using hydrogen to reduce iron ore. Silicon and hydrogen form toxic silane<\/a>, which over the years has been responsible for a significant number of fatal industrial accidents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why do Australians fall for such absurd green narratives?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reason appears to be that many Australians yearn for the days when Australia was a booming manufacturing hub, before Australian manufacturing went into decline 60 years ago (see the graph at the Top of the page). The green industry narrative plays into this yearning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reality is Australia\u2019s manufacturing decline will not be solved by a few solar panels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As far as I can tell, the decline in Australian manufacturing was caused by a combination of greedy government tax rises, and later, in the 90s, rising energy costs, After the Australian government became obsessed with renewables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Expensive, government subsidised green energy will not fix these problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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via Watts Up With That?<\/mark><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 5, 2022<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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SMH: Australia is Crucial to Global CO2 Reduction<\/a><\/blockquote>