PREVIOUSLY: The fast-expanding economies of India and China were seen as one of the biggest challenges to reducing the carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. That's because coal is a major fuel source for more than 2 billion people there.

NOW: Eco-conscious Europe is returning to coal. European countries are slated to build about 50 coal-fired plants over the next five years.

WHY: Reasons include rising energy demand, record high oil and natural gas prices, concerns about energy security and an aversion to nuclear energy.

THE DREAM: Industry talks of cutting emissions with a technology called carbon capture and storage. It is not commercially available, and no one knows if it is feasible on a large, cost-effective scale.

U.S. COMPARISON: Fewer new coal plants are slated to go online. It is becoming harder to get regulatory permits, and nuclear power remains an alternative.

WARNING: Critics say Europe's move puts the world on a disastrous trajectory that will make controlling global warming impossible.

COMMENT: "We need a moratorium on coal now," said James E. Hansen, a leading climatologist at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies.

The New York Times