Annotated Bibliography: Coal And The Environment

Growing up in South Jersey, I grew up near the coal burning electric plant so I wanted to check out what the impact of burning of coal would have on the environment and on people’s health that could be living near the plant.

For years coal has been used as a primary source of energy. People used to have to burn coal as a primary way to heat their homes. Not to mention, the transportation industry depends on coal to run their locomotives. Coal is also used as a primary way to produce energy for power companies (coal-uses, 2015). However, many people feel that coal is not safe to use and is harming our environment. According to Green Energy, coal is responsible for over 43% of the current global emissions (Green Energy, 2015). Most environmentalists are pushing for the use of renewable sources instead. Some examples of renewable resources are: solar, wind, and geothermal (energy, 2015)All human beings use solar energy is one way or another. For instance, drying

Clean coal technology usually addresses atmospheric problems resulting from burning coal. Historically, the primary focus was on sulfur dioxide and particulates, since it is the most important gas in the causation of acid rain. More recent focus has been on carbon dioxide (due to its impact on global warming) as well as other pollutants. Concerns exist regarding the economic viability of these technologies and the timeframe of delivery, potentially high hidden economic costs in terms of social and environmental damage, and the costs and viability of disposing of removed carbon and other toxic matter. More, the byproducts of coal power production range from fly ash sludge ponds full of mercury, arsenic, and sulfur in unlined ponds that can leak into the water supply.

Coal is the dirtiest of all fossil fuels. When burned, it produces emissions that contribute to global warming, create acid rain and pollute water. With all of the talk surrounding nuclear energy, hydropower and biofuels, you might be forgiven for thinking that grimy coal is finally on its way out. On the other hand, coal is no sooty remnant of the Industrial Revolution - it generates half of the electricity in the United States and will likely continue to do so as long as it's cheap and plentiful . Clean coal technology seeks to reduce harsh environmental effects by using multiple technologies to clean. Coal is a fossil fuel composed primarily of carbons and hydrocarbons. Its ingredients help make plastics, tar and fertilizers. A coal derivative, a solidified carbon called coke, melts iron ore and reduces it to create steel. But most coal - 92 percent of the U.S. supply - goes into power production .Electric companies and businesses with power plants burn coal to make the steam that turns turbines and generates electricity. When coal burns, it releases carbon dioxide and other emissions in flue gas, the billowing clouds you see pouring out of smoke stacks. Some clean coal technologies purify the coal before it burns. One type of coal preparation, coal washing, removes unwanted minerals by mixing crushed coal with a liquid and allowing the impurities to separate and settle. Other systems control the coal burn to minimize emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and

Coal is a dirty industry from beginning to end, but until recently the public knew very little of how the coal cycle ends -- with millions of tons of toxic coal ash waste produced each year. Coal ash can cause many health problems for people who are exposed to it, and it can also damage our environment.The EPA has been very lenient with coal ash reuse and storage, and due to that leniency, many communities were and still are being negatively affected. Coal ash is not only negatively affecting North Carolina and the United States, it’s negatively affecting Earth in general. Coal ash is a global problem, and the EPA should be more strict with companies that reuse or store coal ash. As we deal with decades of coal ash waste, ultimately, we must stop burning coal to make power and find better ways to efficiently create electricity without making global warming worse.

Jason Hayes, communications director for the American Coal Council says “the industry over the past few decades had invested over $100 billion in cleaning up emissions and it’s already been effective. All of the important noxious pollutants have decreased markedly over the last 30 to 40 years. We’ve been doing all of this on top of dealing with everything else.” Coal may not be green, but it is a source of energy American needs. It is cheap and efficient. Without coal, America wouldn’t be anywhere near where it is today. The coal mined here isn’t just used for energy. America’s

The biggest concern associated with coal energy is the affect it has on the environment. It is a dirty fuel that pollutes the air, water and land. Burning coal releases harmful waste such as carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide,

Coal’s reputation has become as black as coal itself, but without it the quality of life that hundreds of millions of people enjoy today would not be possible. Coal has been used in many ways throughout history and it will continue to be a vital resource in supplying the energy needed to fuel an energy hungry world. Research cited throughout this paper suggests that coal is an energy source for the future because it is stable and reliable with abundant reserves, it is the most affordable and efficient fuel source used to produce power, and because of new clean coal technologies, coal can be burned with minimal to no damage to the environment.

Coal is the most abundant and important source of primary energy in the world. There are reserves spread throughout some one hundred countries to meet global needs up to the next two hundred and fifty years. It is the most important fossil fuel for electricity generation and industrial purposes. But, it has pollution issues to the environment like Air pollution, land degradation, noise pollution, etc. But the pollution I am going to be talking about is water pollution from the coal mines in the Alabama rivers.

I would have to say that from the reading that it can be very harmful for the coal mining chemicals to seep into the ground into our drinking water.

Even people who do not develop illnesses from coal pollutants will find their health and wellbeing impacted due to coal's contribution to global warming. The discharge of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere associated with burning coal is a major contributor to global warming and its adverse effects on health and wellbeing worldwide, such as heat stroke, malaria, declining food production, scarce water supplies, social conflict and

The energy we get from coal today comes from the energy that plants absorbed from the sun millions of years ago. When an area is to be mined, topsoil and subsoil are removed from the rock and so is another material, call overburden, to expose the bed of coal. All living plants give solar energy through photosynthesis. When plants die the energy gets out as the plants decay. The whole decaying process gets interrupted which prevents the release of the stored solar energy, then the energy stays locked in the coal. The plant material gets subjected to high temperatures and pressures which causes physical and chemical changes in the vegetation, transforming it into peat and then into coal. The formation of peat is the first step in the geological formation of fossil fuels such as coal. Peat plants is not only the first step for formation but they also capture CO2 itself. There are many effect to the environment when it comes to coal; an example is AMD which stands for Acid mine drainage; it includes the outflow of acidic water from coal mines or metal mines. Mines exposed rocks containing pyrite which reacts to water and air to form acid and dissolved iron and can easily wash into rivers and streams. Coal is a huge impact when it comes to hurting our

The narrative of clean coal has been propped up by the industries primary lobbyist group, the National Mining Association, with a budget of nearly twenty million dollars a year (Coniff). Lobbying is a natural part of the political process, but the issue becomes when the lobbying is disingenuous and the coal industry has zero intentions of implementing clean coal, based on the fact that no coal plants currently in the United States make use of any of the technology. Although the technology is still being developed, there are no future plans to implement it as well. On the other side, those who speak out against coal and clean coal are naturally groups concerned about the environment, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and green advocacy groups. They recognize that coal power plants are the primary contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the United States and thus their emissions must be controlled (Eilperin and Mufson). They also believe even though limiting coal power plants will cost a great deal of money, the American people will have a net benefit due to lower public health costs as a result of air pollution while also benefitting globally by reducing greenhouse gas fueled climate change. Essentially, clean coal is pursued by those who have a vested commercial interest in its being as a mainstay of electricity generation, while those who oppose it are against the negative health and climate effects it

Coal releases dozens of hazardous substances that can be harmful to human health. These are just four of the many things that coal releases: Mercury, particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide. Every one of these act on the nervous system to cause loss of intellectual capacity. Exposure to coal dust can lead to black lung disease, or pneumoconiosis, which took the lives of 10,000 miners worldwide over the last decade. Black lung disease is similar to diseases you can get from smoking tobacco for a long period of time. This disease is most common with coal miners, because they are constantly exposed to the dangers coal causes. Coal affects not only the human respiratory system, but also the cardiovascular and nervous system. This

The total United States carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions for 2014 were 5,404 million metric tons (Mt). Of this, the electricity sector was responsible for 2,043 Mt (37.8%). Coal fired power plants produced 76% of the electricity sector’s CO2 emissions, with the most of the remaining emissions coming from natural gas-fired power plants. With new clean air standards being signed into law every year, coal-fired power plants are facing a serious push towards clean coal technology. Coal resources are abundant throughout the world, inexpensive, and relatively stable in price compared other energy resources such as natural gas. For this reason, coal is expected continue to play a large role as one of the primary energy sources for the generation of electricity in the United States well in 2040 (EIA, 2012). However, the most critical issue with promoting the utilization of coal is to decrease its environmental load. Today, the generation of electricity via coal is extremely dirty; combustion of coal generates larger amounts of sulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulates compared to oil and natural gas. To make it possible to utilize coal in a manner harmonious with the environment, as required by carbon pollution standards in the United States, and contribute to the energy security of our nation, it is important to develop and expand the use of clean coal technology.