Chapter 19. Chapter 19: Coal

What are the drawbacks of using coal?

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Guiding Question 19.4

What are the drawbacks of using coal?

Why You Should Care

Coal’s widespread use speaks to its advantages: It is relatively cheap and widely accessible and well suited to generating electricity. Its disadvantages come in many different spheres as well—water pollution, air pollution, and ecosystem degradation.

All types of coal mining create overburden that must be removed and piled as mine spoils. Rainwater trickles through this waste and creates acidic runoff that pollutes nearby streams, lakes, and rivers. Once coal is hauled (by barge or train) from the mine to the power plant, burning it releases the most carbon dioxide per ton of any fossil fuel.

Mountaintop removal poses its own set of drawbacks. Not only is there acid drainage, but there are also whole mountains that are clearcut, dug up, and moved to nearby lower elevations. These ecosystems can never return to their original state once their soil layers are disrupted in this way.

Question Test Your Vocabulary

Fill in the blank with the correct term for the following definition:

A document outlining the positive and negative impacts of any action that has the potential to cause environmental damage is called an CkXtyLPGcX2Ra1L+aZwipRItcj5l78fydnHWJrofjcdHzqOWhFy8pA==.

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Infographic 19.6: Environmental and Health Problems of Using Coal

Question 19.1

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Streams can suffer if heavy metals (such as selenium) or acids (such as those from sulfur) harm fish and other aquatic species.

Question 19.2

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Forests can be clearcut via mountaintop removal or damaged by landslides from piles of mining wastes. Forest loss also endangers species like the Cerulean Warbler.

Question 19.3

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Human health is negatively impacted by coal mining. The more coal that is mined, the higher the rates of heart, lung, and kidney disease among the local population.