Environmentalists get fed up, challenge idea of clean coal with “Reality” campaign
A coalition of environmental groups has gotten together to run a “Reality” campaign challenging the notion of “clean coal” technology as a myth. The goal is clearly to counter mass-marketing spend by the coal industry to plant the unproven concept in the minds of US voters and officials.
As noted in this blog previously, clean coal remains attractive as a concept — especially in energy-poor, coal-rich countries like China and India — despite skepticism about its feasibility .
The Reality campaign is using a variety of channels including humorous — and more than a little biting — television ads, YouTube videos, and Web banner ads to deliver its message, cleverly branding itself with a yellow canary. (Caged canaries were used in coal mines traditionally as an early warning system against excessive buildups of deadly coal gas. The little birds would drop dead long before human miners could detect the gas’s presence.)
