Burning Coal: Is It A Major Pollutant?

Burning coal is a major contributor to pollution and has a range of negative impacts on the environment and human health. Coal is a fossil fuel and non-renewable energy source that is combusted to generate electricity. When burned, coal releases harmful pollutants such as mercury, lead, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, and various other heavy metals. These pollutants have been linked to adverse health effects, including asthma, breathing difficulties, brain damage, heart problems, cancer, neurological disorders, and premature death. Additionally, coal-fired power plants contribute to air pollution, global warming, and environmental contamination, further exacerbating climate change. The transition away from coal is essential to mitigate these impacts and reduce the risk of irreversible ecological and human disruption.

Coal is the most polluting way to generate electricity

Coal mining and extraction also have significant environmental impacts. Mountaintop removal and valley fill mining, for example, have affected large areas of the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia and Kentucky. This type of coal extraction involves removing the tops of mountains with explosives, altering the landscape and potentially harming aquatic wildlife downstream.

The process of burning coal releases toxic and carcinogenic substances into the air, water, and land. This severely affects the health of miners, workers, and nearby communities. In Australia, coal's health impacts cost taxpayers an estimated $2.4 billion annually, causing a range of health issues, including higher rates of childhood asthma, heart and lung disease, and certain cancers. Coal-related air pollution is also responsible for thousands of deaths each year in China, India, and the United States.

Coal-fired power plants emit sulphur dioxide, which contributes to acid rain and respiratory illnesses. Additionally, coal ash, a residue of coal burning, can contaminate groundwater if not properly stored or disposed of. While efforts have been made to reduce pollutants from coal-fired plants, such as using scrubbers to remove sulphur, the carbon dioxide emissions that drive global warming remain a significant challenge.

To address these environmental and health concerns, many countries are transitioning away from coal. As of the end of 2023, 84 countries had agreed to phase out coal or not develop new unabated coal power plants, representing around 30% of current coal consumption for electricity generation.

Burning coal releases harmful airborne toxins and pollutants

Coal-fired power plants emit toxic heavy metals such as mercury, lead, arsenic, and cadmium, as well as pollutants like carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, and particulate matter (soot). These emissions have been linked to a range of health issues, including respiratory and cardiovascular disease, asthma, aggravated asthma, heart attacks, neurological problems, and even cancer. The inhalation of hazardous substances and coal micro-particles poses a significant risk to human health, with miners, workers, and surrounding communities being particularly affected.

Additionally, burning coal contributes to global warming and climate change. It releases carbon dioxide (CO2), a heat-trapping gas that warms the Earth's surface, leading to rising temperatures, accelerating sea level rise, drought, heat waves, heavy rainfall, intensified storms, and species loss. The release of CO2 from burning coal is a major driver of global warming and poses a serious threat to the environment and future generations.

Furthermore, coal mining practices can also have detrimental effects on the environment. Mountaintop removal and valley fill mining, for example, can alter landscapes and pollute downstream waterways, harming aquatic wildlife. Coal ash produced by power plants can also contaminate groundwater if not properly stored or disposed of.

While efforts have been made to reduce emissions and capture carbon dioxide, the burning of coal continues to have significant environmental and health impacts, highlighting the need for a transition to cleaner sources of energy to mitigate these harmful effects.

Coal extraction techniques can change the landscape and harm wildlife

Coal is the most polluting way to generate electricity. It releases massive amounts of pollution, damaging human health, and contributing to climate change. The burning of coal emits toxic and carcinogenic substances into the air, water, and land, severely affecting the health of miners, workers, and surrounding communities.

Coal extraction techniques can indeed change the landscape and harm wildlife. Coal extraction requires significant land clearance, including the clear-cutting and burning of forests. To reach the coal seams, miners must remove large amounts of soil and rock, destroying wildlife habitats. One destructive form of surface mining, mountaintop removal, involves removing the tops of mountains with explosives and pushing the soil and rock into nearby valleys. This changes the landscape and can result in streams being covered with rock and dirt. The water draining from these filled valleys may contain pollutants that can harm aquatic wildlife downstream.

Underground mines generally affect the landscape less than surface mines, but they still pose risks. The ground above mine tunnels can collapse, and acidic water can drain from abandoned mines, affecting nearby rivers and streams. Coalbed methane, a highly concentrated and explosive gas, must be vented out of mines to make them safer workplaces. However, methane emissions from coal mines contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

The extraction and burning of coal have severe impacts on wildlife. Coal-fired power plants are the leading source of smog, acid rain, and toxic air pollution, emitting harmful pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, mercury, and arsenic. These pollutants cause respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in both humans and wildlife. Coal ash, the toxic waste generated by coal-fired power plants, is often improperly stored, leading to spills that devastate natural wildlife habitats. Additionally, coal-fired power plants dump millions of tons of toxic metals into surface water, with coal plants being responsible for 72% of all toxic water pollution in the United States, according to the EPA.

The dust created by coal mining causes problems for wildlife, impairing the ability of leaves to photosynthesize and reducing oxygen availability in waterways. Acid mine drainage, a result of coal mining, disrupts the growth and reproduction of aquatic plants and animals and can lead to the loss of aquatic life. Climate change, driven in part by coal-fired power plants' greenhouse gas emissions, is already impacting wildlife, with rising ocean temperatures and more frequent natural disasters.

Coal ash waste can contaminate waterways and drinking water supplies

Burning coal is the most polluting way to generate electricity. It emits toxic and carcinogenic substances into the air, water, and land, severely affecting the health of miners, workers, and surrounding communities. Coal ash, a mixture of feather-light dust and rock-laden material left over from burning coal, is one of the many dangerous by-products of burning coal. It typically contains harmful substances such as arsenic, chromium, lead, and mercury.

Coal ash waste is often stored in unlined ponds or pits, and when it rains, the toxic metals can be easily leached out and transported to underlying groundwater, which can then affect drinking water supplies. This has been observed in the United States, where coal-powered electricity generation has produced at least 5 billion tons of coal ash. EPA data shows that the remaining 299 coal-burning plants in the country generate almost 70 million tons of new ash each year, and the contaminants from this waste continue to migrate into drinking water sources and recreational lakes and rivers.

The impact of coal ash waste on waterways and drinking water supplies is significant. In 2014, 39,000 tons of coal ash spilled into North Carolina's Dan River. Six years earlier, more than 5 million cubic yards of coal ash spilled into the Emory River in Tennessee, one of the largest environmental disasters in US history. These spills have contaminated waterways and affected aquatic ecosystems and drinking water sources. In one example, the New Castle Generating Station, located near the Beaver River, a drinking water source for over 5 million people, was found to be contaminated with arsenic and other toxic chemicals.

The US government has taken steps to address coal ash waste, with President Obama's EPA issuing the first federal rule pertaining to its disposal in 2015. However, coal ash is still not classified as hazardous waste, and the impact of coal ash waste on waterways and drinking water supplies remains a pressing environmental and health concern.

Coal-fired power plants are linked to asthma, cancer, and other health problems

Burning coal is a major contributor to air, water, and soil pollution. Coal-fired power plants emit air pollutants, including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and fine particles called PM2.5. These pollutants have been linked to a range of adverse health effects, particularly for those living in proximity to coal-fired power plants.

Several studies have found a correlation between coal-fired power plants and respiratory issues, including asthma. Research in Louisville, Kentucky, revealed that reductions in sulfur dioxide emissions from four coal-fired power plants were associated with improved asthma symptoms in the local population. The use of asthma medication, as measured by digital sensors attached to inhalers, decreased following the implementation of measures to reduce emissions. This indicates a direct link between coal-fired power plant emissions and asthma exacerbations.

Additionally, coal-fired power plants have been associated with increased risks of developing lung cancer. Household coal use, particularly prevalent in China and other Asian countries, has been deemed carcinogenic, with elevated lung cancer risks observed. Studies suggest that the lung cancer risk associated with coal use varies by location, with certain regions in China exhibiting the highest risks.

The waste products generated by coal-fired power plants, such as coal ash, also pose significant health risks. Coal ash contains heavy metals and radioactive material, which can contaminate groundwater and the surrounding environment. Exposure to these toxins has been linked to premature deaths, cardiovascular diseases, low birth weights, and an elevated risk of developmental and behavioral disorders in infants.

While regulations and technologies have been implemented to reduce emissions and impurities from coal-burning processes, the health effects of coal-fired power plants remain a significant concern. Further research is necessary to comprehensively understand the specific components and exposure levels that contribute to adverse health outcomes.

Frequently asked questions