New York's dumping ground halfway between West Egg and the city where the burnt-out coal that powered the booming golden city was discarded by men who moved dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air.
But many shippers complain that for heavy bulk commodities traveling long distances, such as coal, chemicals, and grain, trucking is too costly and the railroads therefore have them by the throat.
While fossil fuels — coal, oil, gas — still generate roughly 85 percent of the world's energy supply, it's clearer than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar.
Two other techniques, called gasification and oxy-combustion, work by reacting coal with pure oxygen rather than air, and thus produce exhausts that require little treatment before burial.
Among its recommendations, the Commission supports a phase-out of coal power plants, expansion of renewable energy, investment in health systems and a commitment to a strong global climate treaty.