[ti:Asia Builds up Coal Despite Falling Demands] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Coal power plant building will continue in Asia [00:04.76]despite falling electricity demand and environmental concerns. [00:10.88]Experts say the move comes as governments [00:14.52]try to help economies hurt by the coronavirus crisis. [00:19.76]In a report last month, the International Energy Agency [00:25.24]said that demand for electricity will decrease this year due to lockdowns. [00:32.52]The United Nations and other organizations [00:36.80]say the decrease creates a rare chance for Asia to launch a "green recovery." [00:44.24]But there are already signs that China and other countries like South Korea and Japan [00:52.84]will spend money to help struggling companies and suppliers in the coal business. [01:00.60]Matt Gray works for Carbon Tracker, an organization that looks at the risks of fossil fuels. [01:08.84]"China and other governments may be tempted to invest in coal power [01:14.48]to help their economies recover after the COVID-19 pandemic," he said. [01:21.96]"This risks locking in high-cost coal power that will undermine global climate targets." [01:30.40]China produces and uses about half of the world's coal. [01:35.76]It recently sped up the building of five coal power plants [01:41.32]and permitted more buildings to start in 2023. [01:46.28]In April, China also imported 22 percent more coal than it did a year earlier. [01:55.52]As coal industries in Japan and South Korea face pressure [02:00.92]to reduce emissions in their own countries, [02:04.76]they are expected to continue to build coal plants [02:09.00]in developing countries like Vietnam and Indonesia. [02:13.92]The global long-term outlook for coal power, however, is not good. [02:20.96]Governments, banks and energy companies - under public and investor pressure [02:28.60]- are dropping investments in fossil fuel. [02:31.84]Many see coal power as the greatest risk to the 2015 Paris Agreement. [02:39.88]The goal of the agreement is to limit global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius. [02:47.80]That goal already looks out of reach, environmental experts say, [02:53.48]partly because of new coal plants being built in Asia. [02:58.80]It is the biggest energy-consuming region and largest growth market. [03:05.12]The Global Energy Monitor says about 500 gigawatts of coal power capacity [03:12.56]is planned or being built around the world, and more than 80 percent of that is in Asia. [03:21.36]Even a small number of new plants will increase CO2 emissions [03:27.40]and drive demand for coal mining in places like Australia and Indonesia. [03:34.36]Meanwhile, there is bad news in the short term for renewable energy. [03:40.92]Wood Mackenzie estimates 150 gigawatts of wind and solar projects [03:47.96]across the Asia Pacific region could be delayed or cancelled over the next five years. [03:56.08]I'm John Russell. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM