Spindoc,

Going by those figures - ie "18 kWh per day (of renewable generation) per person against average demand of 125 kWh per day" - it seems the only way to green the planet without forcing a massive lifestyle change is to find a way to burn coal much more cleanly. One way or another, something has to give ... or change.

As for the Greens, I remember Tony Maher, the Secretary of the Mining Division of the CFMEU and nominally on the left side of politics, proclaiming that Bob Brown was "barking mad" after he (Brown) suggested that the country should shut down all coal-fired power stations. It was the snappiest (and funniest) putdown I heard for ages. That, unfortuntely, is about as far as the Greens have come.

RobP, my sentiments exactly. For anyone proposing that "clean coal" (a contradiction in terms) has any value, just google "clean coal". It seems that to extract Carbon from the burning of coal requires us to burn (yes, you got it) more coal. its a bit like saying electric transport is great, all we have to do is plug it into...... er? Oh yes, a coal fired power point?