美国清洁煤 将有助于美中煤炭行业
Developing “clean coal” technology would help the coal sector in the US and China and prevent further job losses, according to US energy secretary Ernest Moniz.
美国能源部长欧内斯特•莫尼兹(Ernest Moniz)表示，发展“清洁煤”技术将帮助美国和中国的煤炭行业，并防止更多失业。
Crashing prices for coal amid China’s economic slowdown and US investors’ preference for newer, less polluting energy technology has hit the industry hard in both countries.
在中国经济放缓，而美国投资者偏好较新、污染较小的能源科技的背景下，煤价大幅下挫严重冲击了两国的煤炭行业。
Last week US coal group Peabody filed for bankruptcy under the weight of about $6bn in debt. Meanwhile, Beijing’s bid to shut down capacity and cut jobs in the sector last month prompted mass protests in China by coal workers from at least two big state-owned mines.
上周美国煤炭集团博地能源(Peabody Energy)在约60亿美元债务的重压下申请破产保护。与此同时，上个月北京方面关闭煤炭产能和裁员的努力在至少两个大型国有煤矿引发了煤炭工人的大规模抗议。
Clean coal is the holy grail for those who accept the world’s dependence on the energy source but want to curb emissions of carbon and other greenhouse gases that scientists say contribute to damaging global warming.
对于那些接受世界对煤炭这种能源的依赖，但又希望遏制科学家宣称引起破坏性全球变暖的二氧化碳及其他温室气体排放的人来说，清洁煤是他们努力追求的理想。
“The idea of having a continued opportunity for coal use in a highly carbon-constrained world is something that’s attractive for carbon reasons. It’s also attractive in addressing the coal country, the dislocations that otherwise would become even greater,” Mr Moniz said in an interview in Beijing before the Peabody announcement.
“在一个高度限制碳排放的世界里继续有机会使用煤炭，这个想法就碳排放而言有吸引力。对于解决煤炭国家原本可能变得更为严重的脱节，这也是有吸引力的，”莫尼兹在博地能源宣布申请破产保护之前在北京接受采访时表示。
China and the US, the world’s two biggest polluters, have reached a series of deals to curb emissions and build domestic political support for lower-carbon industrial policies to help meet commitments made late last year in Paris. Mr Moniz said the two countries’ reliance on coal required the development of coal technologies that emitted less carbon.
世界最大的两个污染国中国和美国已经达成了一系列协议，以遏制排放，并为低碳产业政策建立国内政治支持，目的是帮助两国履行去年末在巴黎做出的承诺。莫尼兹表示，两国对煤炭的依赖要求开发出碳排放较少的煤炭技术。
Clean coal is contentious among environmentalists. Some see it as the only way to reduce emissions while maintaining or increasing the energy supply available to the world’s 7bn people. Others believe it diverts funds from more promising technologies while so far failing to deliver on emissions reductions.
清洁煤在环保主义者当中存在争议。一些人将其视为在维持或者提高世界70亿人可用的能源供应的同时减少排放的唯一方法。另一些人则认为，这会分流一些原本将投向更有希望的技术的资金，况且清洁煤技术迄今未能实现减排。
The US is promoting pilot projects in China, including carbon capture and storage. Chinese construction companies have been involved in planning coal-based projects in the US, including the energy department-backed Texas Clean Energy plant, although many of those projects have stalled.
美国正在中国推行试点项目，包括碳捕获和封存。中国的建筑公司参与规划美国基于煤炭的项目，包括得到美国能源部支持的德州清洁能源工厂(TCEP)，尽管这些项目有很多已被搁置。
“For a carbon-constrained world, we feel we must develop the enabling technologies for all sources, including coal. The marketplace will then decide,” Mr Moniz said.
“在碳排放受限的世界，我们觉得我们必须发展使所有能源来源（包括煤炭）都能使用的科技。之后市场会做出决定，”莫尼兹表示。
