Human Health Problems Caused By Air Pollution

Consider the following information: Every time we use fossil fuels, we release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Fuel must be burned to extract oil from the ground and process it; and then more fuel must be burned just to transport the fuel to where we buy it! Scientists believe that it is carbon dioxide emissions that are responsible for climate change, specifically the global warming effect.

Obtaining energy by the means of burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and natural gas, is unsustainable and raises environmental concerns. Gases like carbon dioxide, as well as other toxic pollutants, are released into the atmosphere when these fossil fuels are burned. This contributes to air pollution, the greenhouse effect, and ultimately global warming. When carbon dioxide is exposed to the air, heat is trapped and is unable to escape into space, leading to the rise in global temperatures. Pollution in the air can cause diseases in living organisms,

Things like mining too far into a wall that connects to an older mine, thus increasing the danger of a collapse, is common. Other practices include shoddy dams that contain the slurry, a mixture of water and fine particles of coal, which do not always meet structural regulations that can and have broken and flood nearby communities (Light and Light, 2006). There are other environmental issues that are associated with coal mining. Acid mine drainage is the result of sulfide minerals being exposed to oxygen. This produces sulfuric acid and can dissolve heavy metals from the waste rock, making it bioavailable. Without proper treatment, this will poison the water systems near that mine and will seep into the streams, creeks, and even ground and well water. The water turns orange and is impossible for anything to live off of the water or in it (Kirsch, 2014). Another issue of coal mining is airborne coal dust, which can result in Black Lung disease. This is caused by inhaling too much coal dust and is common in miners, but with surface mining becoming more prevalent, more coal dust is being released into the air and drifting down to the communities. More children and elderly people are having respiratory problems that many believe are because of

According to scientists the burning of fossil fuels is the main source for the large amounts of pollutants humans are creating. Fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas produce large amounts of carbon when burned to create energy that we all use. Many people think that the burning of these fossil fuels is not that big of a deal and there are other major contributors in the climate change controversy. The burning of these resources produce thousands of tons of carbon that are released into the atmosphere everyday Most everyone in the United States uses some source of energy produced from fossil fuels. Without the fossil fuels the major cities would not have enough energy to keep everything going. While they are working on increasing the amount of renewable energy sources, they are still dependent on the fossil fuels. Scientists are trying to link human pollution to the extreme weather changes that have been going on in recent years. An article found on www.edf.com Climate Changes Effect Plunder the Planet brings up some of the ideas that are caused by climate change. With the large amounts of carbon and other greenhouse gasses that are released they are effecting our ozone layer by trapping heat from leaving the planet, causing an increase in the global temperature around the world. www.study.com Fossil Fuels, Greenhouse Gases, and Global Warming states that over the last 800

` The continuous use of fossil fuels is leading the Earth on a path to destruction. Generations of advancement and technological innovation being brought down to rubble. Natural disasters wreaking havoc on innocent people across the world. Temperatures soaring above 125℉ globally. These are the results of the excessive use of fossil fuels. A chief concern in the 21st century is global warming and climate change, and the continued use of fossil fuels for the technology and daily lives of humans is key to blame. Decades ago, these problems were much more daunting and seemingly unsolvable than they are today, with the use of alternative energy sources and new

When fossil fuels are burnt, the c02 is released into the atmosphere rapidly, and the c02 cycle doesn’t have enough time to get the c02 out of the atmosphere. This c02 traps the heat from coming out of the atmosphere and creates global warming. Global warming is serious because it melts the ice cap, removes habitas, raises sea levels and many other negative effects. A good way to stop this environmental hazard is to use green energy. Instead of burning coal and natural gas, we can use more wind turbines, hydro-electric dams and other green electricity options. We also need to research solar panels more, so we can make them more efficiant. If we start to do this, the c02 outtake would be significantly decreased and the world will be a better place to live

Emissions from coal fired power plants contribute to global warming, ozone smog, acid rain, regional haze, and perhaps most consequential of all from a public health standpoint, fine particle pollution.

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

Climate change, specifically in reference to C02 Emissions released by human use of fossil fuels and their consequential effects on the environment, is perhaps one of the most pressing issues we, not just as Americans, but as human beings face in our lifetimes. Though it may sound like a sensationalist statement the facts are hard to deny. In May of 2013, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Another concern is the stress coal puts on our environment. Coal is known as a dirty-burning source of energy. The U.S. Energy Information Administration found that burning coal released various dangerous emissions including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and carbon dioxide as well as numerous others. Sulfur dioxide contributes to the formation and toxicity of acid rain as well as respiratory illnesses; nitrogen oxides develops smog and more respiratory illnesses; carbon dioxide which is the leading greenhouse gas that damages the atmosphere (EIA 2017) . Not only does coal contribute to our growing environmental problems but also affects human health around the country. Dr. Michael Hendryx of West Virginia University began discovered an alarming correlation with coal production and various ailments. Hendryx found that closer the location of settlements to

"For too long the coal industry has used our atmosphere like a sewer for its airborne pollution," says a website www.GreenPeace.org. Coal when burned releases harmful gases, and humans are being affected by this airborne pollution. In the USA there are more than 40% of people who live in areas with unhealthy levels of air pollution. Many doctors say inhaling these harmful gases could possibly lead to death. Many doctors say that inhaling these gases is like giving your lungs a sunburn. The effects of inhaling these gases have caused premature death, lung damage, and have even been connected to cause heart attacks.

With that being said here are some environmental impacts of coal you may not know about. The air pollutants cause acid rain, smog ,respiratory illnesses, cancers and toxins in the environment. Coal miners can get respiratory illnesses from the coal dust while mining. If an abandoned coal mine catches fire it puts tons of mercury into the atmosphere, this happens every year and is responsible for three percent of carbon dioxide emissions globally. The second largest contributor to

Waste Generation: coal-fired power use causes several pollutant emissions in the atmosphere causing global climate change (Weaver, 2008). Also, it has large waste generation, which results in land and water resource depletion because it contaminates the very air and water we use every day. This causes public health and safety as well as animal health and safety (Worldcoal.org, 2016)

Around the world, populations have continued to increase their use of fossil fuels which has made a great contribution to global climate change. “The continuing combustion of fossil fuels since the industrial revolution has contributed more than 75% of the carbon dioxide, the major greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere, with the remainder due to intentional cropland and rainforest burning” (Diaz, 2006). For over 150 years we have continued this harmful use of fossil fuels and slowly we are

The world currently functions through the use of fossil fuels. However, fossil fuels possess two significant disadvantages. Fossil fuels harm the global environment because they enhance the greenhouse effect by releasing carbon dioxide, and they release other harmful