The Dirty power generators know that power consumption is down, due to wind and solar being fed into the grid. 750,000 houses with solar on the roof, and increasing greatly. The winners are the houses with solar, and those buying green power. Dirty power generators will get the message, and transform, as their dirty power will continue to decline.

579; you contribute nothing to this debate; your comments are rubbish:

"dirty power"

Are you 12?

The winners are those with panels on the roof alright. The losers are the children not showered daily, elderly using candles and other unsafe ignition methods and in general, ordinary people.
As currently constituted, Solar is immoral being a huge transfer from the Battlers to the Vanity Classes; those who have their snouts in the trough of public money so they can show off should be ashamed. When it works it won’t need rivers of gold from the Public purse.

Of course CO2 is a pollutant, Cohenite, the same way salt can be a pollutant. Salt, the stuff we put on our scrambled eggs - yes and we'd die if we didn't have any of it - is very bad for health and is indeed toxic if its concentration in drinking water is too high. The adjective usually used for pollutants is 'dirty', so cohenite its you who's being infantile.

I think you and Shadow know that excess CO2 is a pollutant, but you try to kid the gullible (through such means as those weird AEM and 'wind farm' websites) that it's no problem, it's really just a plant nutrient. You see renewable energy as a threat to your comfort and or cash flow (real of perceived), as do the fossil fuel industries that fund this crap.

Shadow - you claim you are an engineer but refuse to acknowledge that x% of energy generated by renewables means x% less fossil fuels used and nearly that percentage less CO2 emitted. You also know that while some base load infrastructure is needed on standby it will not be near 100% of what is already there. You also know that it can be generated by other technologies such as biomass and solar thermal with storage. These are already commercial and the price will fall, as it will for batteries and fuel units. The system is CHANGING, as intended by the RET and carbon price.

PS I couldn't give a fig how many old coal plants they keep in mothballs; they'll only be needed in the interim until renewable baseload and storage comes on stream and then only for a few weeks or months a year. Just look at Playford and Northern in SA

Cackie: I acknowledge that as you say those who have got rooftop PV to date have got middle class welfare in the form of excessive FITs.

Don't worry though, those have been reduced and the subsidies are going down; it won't have a big impact on the public purse. And it's had the desired effect, helping to bring down the cost of rooftop solar generation to 'parity' with grid power even without any subsidies.http://reneweconomy.com.au/2012/solar-pv-its-cheaper-than-you-think-58689 . We will be seeing more homes and businesses going 'off grid' with PV and batteries / plug in hybrid vehicles. Much to the consternation of fossil generating companies.

"Of course CO2 is a pollutant, Cohenite, the same way salt can be a pollutant. Salt, the stuff we put on our scrambled eggs - yes and we'd die if we didn't have any of it - is very bad for health and is indeed toxic if its concentration in drinking water is too high. The adjective usually used for pollutants is 'dirty', so cohenite its you who's being infantile."

Gibberish; define "too high"; below 220 ppm plants don't grow; the idea that current levels of CO2 are geologically high is problematic because the ice-core records used to establish lower levels in the past show the same or less levels today than in the past:

http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/vostok_ice_core_nature1999.png

Like every aspect of the 'science' of AGW the CO2 record is fraudulent and tainted:

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2010/11/24/dr-ray-bradleys-amazing-photo/#more-28243

If directors of public companies played around with the data like the pro-AGW scientists do they would be prosecuted.

At current levels CO2 is NOT a pollutant; it has never been a pollutant at any level in the history of the planet and today's levels are lower than most other periods.

The science of AGW is a scam and the solutions, particularly renewable energy, to AGW are a fraud on the public.

This comment by you:

"You see renewable energy as a threat to your comfort and or cash flow (real of perceived), as do the fossil fuel industries that fund this crap."

Marks you as nothing more than a member of a cult: the end of the world caused by AGW cult.

And I'll take my comfort over the ravings of a cult member any day of the week thank you.