What's Up With Coal?

In 2005 between 50 and 60% of electricity produced in the United States was generated by burning coal; today about 500 power plants use coal nationally to produce about 35% of our electricity. These plants continue to be the leading cause of smog, acid rain, and air toxics in our country and worldwide where an even higher percentage of power plants use coal.

How bad is the pollution released by a coal burning plant? Well in an average year, a typical coal plant generates:

  

• 3,700,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), the primary human cause of global warming--as much carbon dioxide as cutting down 161 million trees.
• 10,000 tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2), which causes acid rain that damages forests, lakes, and buildings, and forms small airborne particles that can penetrate deep into lungs.
• 500 tons of small airborne particles, which can cause chronic bronchitis, aggravated asthma, and premature death, as well as haze obstructing visibility.
• 10,200 tons of nitrogen oxide (NOx), as much as would be emitted by half a million late-model cars. NOx leads to formation of ozone (smog) which inflames the lungs, burning through lung tissue making people more susceptible to respiratory illness.
• 720 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), which causes headaches and place additional stress on people with heart disease.
• 220 tons of hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds (VOC), which form ozone.
• 170 pounds of mercury, where just 1/70th of a teaspoon deposited on a 25-acre lake can make the fish unsafe to eat.
• 225 pounds of arsenic, which will cause cancer in one out of 100 people who drink water containing 50 parts per billion.
• 114 pounds of lead, 4 pounds of cadmium, other toxic heavy metals, and trace amounts of uranium.

The Clean Air Act, not withstanding, Big Coal has hardly conceded defeat in this multifront war between a safe environment and the economic impact of regulations (both which impact us all).

The industry has increased political campaign contributions in the last four years to historic levels, with 80 percent of those annual donations going to Republicans…or $4,039,018.00 as compared to $800,000.00 to Democrats in 2011, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Companies like Arch Coal, which used to spend only about $100,000 a year on lobbyists in Washington, invested $5.7 million to push its case during the first three years of the Obama administration.

And even as American Electric Power plans to close 5 of its 21 coal-burning plants and rely much more on natural gas, it still intends to retrofit 12 plants. That means it will be burning coal for years to come. A rise in natural gas prices could also slow the decline of coal as a power source. So the company has joined with old allies in Washington to try to delay the new rules and block any future ones.

The industry and its supporters have also gone to court, filing lawsuits challenging E.P.A. rules that limit pollution from coal-burning plants from crossing state lines and the mountaintop mining rules that are holding up new permits in Kentucky and West Virginia — legal fights that the industry has had some success with so far.

If you care about this issue ...either side...you need to be speaking with your State and Federal representatives...voice your opinion to make a difference.