Research on how human health is impacted by energy resources such as coal is an emerging area. We will discuss situations in which health problems have been confirmed and where the health impacts of coal have been distorted. French, phd pegasus environmental services alaska summary. Onsite health clinics managed by occupational health nurses working in the coal mining industry are proposed as a means to improve health care outcomes. Coal development in alaska, overview on acats website. Coals assault on human health physicians for social. The book is an expansion of a 2009 paper by physicians for social responsibility, coal s assault on human health, available for free on the psr website. As gottlieb and others stated in coals assault on human health reductions in p. Probable agents related to coal dust fall into the five categories summarized in this outline. A briefing paper probable causes of adverse effects of. Additionally, the extraction, transportation, and combustion of coal can have major impacts on natural, social, and economic conditions. Facts and fallacies this lecture will provide an overview of the issue.
Coals serious adverse health impacts are broadly accepted by scientific and medical communities and include. Physicians for social responsibility has released a groundbreaking medical report, coals assault on human health, which takes a new look at the devastating impacts of coal on the human body. Burning coal produces many dangerous emissions that pollute our. Coal combustion releases mercury, particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and dozens of other substances known to be hazardous to. The medical profession has not said this and indeed mines cannot be closed suddenly because livelihoods are at stake. Coal is a health hazard a dea initiative james hansen the respected us climate scientist has said coalfired power stations are death factories.
During coal combustion, no 2, another main pollutant with highly corrosive properties and strong oxidizing ability, is released and accumulates in the air and cumulatively damages the environment and health levy et al. Burning coal for energy comes at a significant cost to human health. Hospitalization patterns associated with appalachian coal mining. Journal of toxicology and environmental health, part a, 70. Submission of comments on waratah coals proposed galilee. Chealaska teleconference recorded february 15, 2012 download the presentation and click play to listen to the podcast. Both of the following pdf s are available at the coal development in alaska link above on acats website.
The social and economic consequences of the fossil fuel supply chain volume 3 carol olson, frank lenzmann. Epa proposes sulfur dioxide limits for first time since. The positive and negative effects of mountaintop removal. Coals assault on human health alaska community action. Coals assault on human health the collaborative on. He previously wrote an article on medical geology for the november 2001 issue of geotimes. Health canada, the canadian handbook on health impact assessment. The epa concluded that, with the possible exception of mercury, there is no compelling evidence to indicate that emissions from u. Pdf due to its high energy generation potential, coal is widely used in power generation in different. The best available, yet conservative, estimate of the annual number of deaths, globally, occurring because of the small amount of humaninduced climate change to date is about 300,000400,000. Physicians for social responsibility has released a groundbreaking medical report, coal s assault on human health, which takes a new look at the devastating impacts of coal on the human body. According to coals assault on human health, a report by the nonprofit physicians for social responsibility psr, coal combustion releases mercury, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and other. Land facts there is no such thing as clean coal coal mining can have disastrous impacts on human health and the environment compared to the soaring price of oil and natural gas, coal might seem. Coalfired power plant airborne particles impact towards human health article pdf available december 2015 with 1,060 reads how we measure reads.
Pdf human health and environmental impacts of coal combustion. Four of these documents were used as the basis for preparing damage cases for this document. Pollutants from coal damage all major organ systems in the human body and contribute to four. A human history is a fascinating and balanced look at the enormous and often unsung impact that this little black rock has had on our lives. Human health and environmental impacts of coal combustion. Issuu is a digital publishing platform that makes it simple to publish magazines, catalogs, newspapers, books, and more online. Coals assault on human health environmental and energy study. Human health and environmental impacts of coal combustion and. If human skin comes into contact with highly contaminated water, dermatitis and irritation can follow. Coal combustion releases mercury, particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and dozens of other. This article investigates how the health disparities of appalachian coal miners and coal mining communities could be decreased through a partnership with occupational health nurses.
Due to its high energy generation potential, coal is widely used in power generation. In the history of coal in america, harlan county, kentucky is legendary for its coal heritage, especially for the efforts of its people to organize for better living and working conditions. B al sb sb sb sb sb sb as as hg mn b b b ni ni ni mo mn mn mn mn ni mn cd cd cd cd zn zn va tl pb tl pb pb pb cr cr cr cr cr cr pm 2. End music the usgs has been digging into this field called medical geology for some time, and today we are joined by three usgs scientists to discuss this research, specifically the links between coal resources and kidney diseases. Joint winners of the 1985 nobel peace prize, the physicians for social responsibility produced a report in 2009 entitled, coals assault on human health in which they suggested that coal mining operations may exacerbate a range of chronic health conditions among people living in nearby communities. Epa proposes sulfur dioxide limits for first time since 1971 by renee schoof mcclatchy newspapers the environmental protection agency is continuing its crackdown on coal pollution with a new plan to cut sulfur dioxide a move that would clean up the air for millions of americans. At every stagefrom mining, transportation, storage, combustion and disposal of postcombustion wastes coal development threatens human and environmental health. Human health is therefore embedded in and intimately dependent on the natural environment. Coals assault on human health physicians for social responsibility has released a groundbreaking medical report, coals assault on human health, which takes a new look at the devastating impacts of coal on the human body. An iowa perspective on coals assault on human health. The human health effects of rail transport of coal through. They found out that comparing to world coals trace elements concentration, chinese coals have typical. Current estimates indicate that the stroke death rate for men is 33.
In jonathan watts article on the two faces of chinas coal industry, we see that coal. Though it is a naturally occurring substance, coal can be dangerous to human health, especially in its particulate form. A new report out this morning from the group physicians for social responsibility outlines an assault on human health by the mining of coal, the. Coals assault on human health physicians for social responsibility. In best practice a detailed rehabilitation or reclamation plan is designed and approved for each coal mine, covering the period from. S heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory diseases. Coal and the hidden threat to health was published last month by mit press. Nor would there have been an industrial revolution. Coals assault on human health 29 patients with hypertension and diabetes as well as improvements in smoking cessation efforts, stroke is still an important cause of death in the u. Pdf coalfired power plant airborne particles impact. Coal mining is only a temporary use of land, so it is vital that rehabilitation of land takes place once mining operations have stopped. The economy, electricity, political power, and health in 2007, the u. For further information, there are two documents attached that outline the adverse health impacts of coal in more detail.
Coal s assault on human health, physicians for social responsibility report nov 2009. Dea position paper on the health impacts of coal 1 coal is a health hazard pollution from coal can affect all major body organ systems and contributes to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the usa. Submission to waikato district council on the resource. An iowa perspective on coals assault on human health posted on november 22, 2009 by paul deaton when we consider the use of coal in iowa, there are many of us who remember the coal trucks plying the streets and alleys of our childhood, dropping loads of the black stuff down chutes leading to a basement coal bin and then to our gravity furnaces. Virginia asthma coalition vac, consortium infant and. Finkelman is a research professor at the university of texas in dallas, who recently retired from the u. Without it, there would have been no british empire. The social and economic consequences of the fossil fuel. Coals assault on human healths executive summarys pdf opening paragraph. Thus in addressing question 2 we ask the cefc to make a statement that. Scientific evidence of health effects from coal use in energy.
Probable causes of adverse effects of chronic coal dust exposure on human and environmental health preliminary analysis john s. Coal combustion releases mercury, particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and dozens of other substances known to be hazardous to human health. Health, which takes a new look at the devastating impacts of coal on the human body. Human health impacts are just that and an eis should not pick and choose whose health will be considered and whose health should be ignored. In addition, 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 worldwide. Some health effects of coal human activities and all our social constructs are a subsystem of the natural environment and are intrinsically dependent on the health of ecosystems. Easily share your publications and get them in front of issuus.
Coal pollutants affect all major body organ systems and contribute to four of the five leading causes of mortality in the u. Summary burning coal for energy comes at a significant cost to human health. Nor would the united states, whose huge coal deposits power our electric plants to this day, have ever become the economic juggernaut. Therefore when looking at the big picture it may seem better for the good of all humanity to reduce the pollutants emitted by the coal life cycle. Epa has conducted previous studies identifying human health and environmental damages caused by mining and mineral processing waste management activities. The absence of detectable health problems is in part due to the fact that the coals burned in the united states generally contain low to.
Organizing for clean energy in kentuckys coal fields. Presented by earthjustice harm to human health from. The cost of the health burden from use of coal for energy production. Coals assault on human health, physicians for social responsibility report nov 2009. Human health and environmental damages from mining and.
1101 1265 494 353 1176 399 309 1071 348 537 1096 155 610 254 567 774 87 1068 1477 645 1135 279 245 865 883 1377 907