A discussion on the adverse effects of coal mining due to different pollutants released from the coa
Coal companies have created at least 6, fills to hold their mining wastes, and the government estimates that if this mining continues unabated in Appalachia it will destroy 1. The River provides drinking water topeople and flows into Pittsburgh.
These dust particles can cause all kinds of health problems for humans who are exposed to it. InUS coal power plants emitted more than 1. CCS technology could potentially play an important role in transitioning to a clean energy future, if significant cost, technical, legal and environmental challenges can be overcome.
Effects of coal mining on human health
Coal has long been a reliable source of American energy, but it comes with tremendous costs because it is incredibly dirty. In contrast, our ability to control the consumption of coal is substantial, since the United States leads the rest of the world in the size of its coal reserves. It also promotes soil erosion and flooding, and stirs up dust pollution that can lead to respiratory problems in nearby communities. A mere six hundred large coal-burning power plants account for nearly all coal usage, in contrast to the tens of millions of cars, trucks, planes, homes, businesses, and factories that burn oil and gas. These mining wastes can become toxic when they are exposed to air and water. Energy Information Agency estimated that coal plants produced 2. Thus, reducing emissions from coal is a far simpler task. Methane CH4 often occurs in the same areas that coal is formed, and is released during mining activities. When it rains, the diluted acid gets into rivers and streams and can even seep into underground sources of water.These toxic metals can accumulate in human and animal tissue and cause serious health problems, including mental retardation, developmental disorders, and damage to the nervous system. EPA records indicate power plant landfills and other disposal practices have polluted groundwater in more than a dozen states, while a EPA report suggested that people living near some power plant landfills faced a cancer risk 2, times higher than federal health standards.
A EPA report cited 67 cases in the United States of damage to ground or surface water from coal-combustion products. On June 17,in a petition presented to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, a coalition of environmental groups called for new controls over coal mine air pollution.