Recent analysis has suggested that it is technologically and economically feasible to produce all new energy with wind, water, and solar by 2030 (Jacobson and Delucchi 2011). Moreover, public opinion on renewables is very favorable; natural gas, nuclear, and coal expansion, on the other hand, are widely unpopular (Thurber 2019, 128). But the world is continuing to rely on fossil fuels to meet growing energy demand, even as renewable energy sees rapid growth (see Kusnetz 2019). In an era of rapid climate change, why do we continue to see reliance on and expansion of fossil fuels?

The three insightful books reviewed in this essay emphasize the importance of different barriers to a fossil-free future. Mark Thurber’s Coal concisely and expertly reviews how coal rose to its present dominance due to political, economic, and technological factors and speculates about how these factors will shape its future. Simon Pirani’s...

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