Hooked on energy

Attn: Energy writers
     Worldwide energy consumption is expected to grow by 50% during the next 25 years, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday (June 25). The robust growth will be fueled by the world’s developing countries and, a factor that’s missed by most in the energy conservation debate, the natural increase in the world’s population.
     Population growth is the 800-pound gorilla that nobody wants to talk about in the energy consumption debate. But, even if the U.S. were able to cut its energy consumption by 50%, adding millions more to the nation’s current population of 304 million would wipe away a substantial amount of any energy savings.
     The EIA’s press release announced the release of the 2008 edition of the International Energy Outlook which is filled with facts and figures about energy production and consumption.
     In its predictions for the 25-year period from 2005 to 2030, the report noted that global consumption of coal—the scourge of climate change advocates—increased from 24% of total world energy consumption in 2002 to about 27% in 2005.
     Moreover, the report predicts that global coal consumption, as a percentage of all forms of energy, will be greatly slowed in coming years. By 2030, coal use will have grown by only 2%, to 29% of the world’s total energy consumption.
     While growth in coal consumption will be greatly slowed between now and 2030 in comparison with other energy resources, the EIA’s report doesn’t estimate total coal consumption in terms of tonnage.
     If the world’s energy appetite grows larger in coming years, then it would mean that the total number of tons that are burned to produce electricity and heat would grow in commensurate portions.
     The report also predicts greater reliance on nuclear power in coming years, something that has been evidenced by recent nuclear reactor applications filed at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Worldwide, nuclear plants that generated 374 gigawatts of electricity in 2005 will be pumping out 498 gigawatts by 2030. China is expected to add 45 gigawatts of nuclear capacity between now and 2030, while India is expected to add 17 gigawatts, Russia is expected to add 18 gigawatts, and the U.S. is expected to add 15 gigawatts.
     Rising crude oil prices will continue to rise and create economic conditions that will justify greater investment in developing renewable and alternative energy sources, and governments will subsidize their development even in cases where renewable energy cannot compete economically with fossil fuels, the EIA said.

Regional differences in health insurance coverage
Attn: Health & medicine editors
     A Centers for Disease Control report released Wednesday (June 25) indicates there are regional and state differences in health insurance coverage. Folks in New England are more apt to have a health insurance policy than folks in the South and West. Surveytakers in CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics said 91.1% of New Englanders but only 77.2% of Texans have health insurance.
     The CDC’s press release estimated that there are 43.1 million Americans of all ages who were without health insurance coverage for all or part of 2007, but doesn’t mention that this is somewhat of an improvement from the 43.6 million who were counted as uninsured in the previous year’s survey. The latest report is based on data collected from 240,000 people under age 65 as part of the 2004-2006 National Health Interview Survey.