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A 2004 study commissioned by environmental groups, but contested by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, concluded that coal burning costs 24,000 lives a year in the United States. [30] More recently, an academic study estimated that the premature deaths from coal related air pollution was about 52,000 each year. [31]
The combustion of coal releases diverse chemicals into the air. The main products are water and carbon dioxide, just like the combustion of petroleum. Also released are sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, as well as some mercury. The residue remaining after combustion, coal ash often contains arsenic, mercury, and lead. Finally, the burning of ...
The effect of fly ash on the environment can vary based on the thermal power plant where it is produced, as well as the proportion of fly ash to bottom ash in the waste product. [70] This is due to the different chemical make-up of the coal based on the geology of the area the coal is found and the burning process of the coal in the power plant.
For use in thermal power plants, coal is ground into dust using a device called a powdered coal mill. [1] The resulting product, called powdered coal or pulverized coal, is then generally used in a fossil fuel power plant for electricity generation. Pulverized coal is a significant dust explosion hazard, as large quantities are suspended in air ...
Air pollution can occur naturally or be caused by human activities. [4] Air pollution causes around 7 or 8 million deaths each year. [5] [6] It is a significant risk factor for a number of pollution-related diseases, including heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma and lung cancer.
The environmental factors of the coal industry are not only impacting air pollution, water management and land use but also is causing severe health effects by the burning of the coal. Air pollution is increasing in numbers of toxins such as mercury, lead, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and other heavy metals. [93]
Coal ash contains many toxic substances that may affect human health, if people are exposed to them above a certain concentration in the form of particulate matter.So it is necessary to avoid situations in which employees working in coal-fired power plants or public members living close to coal ash landfills will be exposed to high coal ash dust concentrations. [4]
Air pollution from this source has been reported in England since the Middle Ages. [7] [8] London, in particular, was notorious up through the mid-20th century for its coal-caused smogs, which were nicknamed "pea-soupers". Air pollution of this type is still a problem in areas that generate significant smoke from burning coal.