Coal-By-Wire
 
Mountaintop Removal
Mountaintop removal uses heavy explosives to blast away up to 1,000 vertical feet of mountain to mine the thin coal seams underneath. More than 470 mountaintops have already been destroyed by this mining practice, burying 75,000 acres of streams, driving communities from the land, contaminating drinking water, and creating health problems from airborne dust and debris.

Coal-Fired Power Plants
Many power plants built prior to 1970 in the Ohio River Valley were grandfathered under the Clean Air Act and have never been upgraded to meet today's environmental standards. And because in part they don't have to meet tighter air quality standards in the East, utilities continue to site plants here. Coal-fired power plants are the largest known contributor to hazardous air pollutants. At least 67 air toxins are released; most are known or suspected carcinogens and neurotoxins. Not coincidentally, West Virginia has the highest rate of death from power plant pollution in the U.S. That pollution doesn't stay put: tall smokestacks assure its delivery to the East Coast and Canada.

New Transmission Lines
In today's market, this dirty coal-powered electricity is sold across state lines, bypassing the stronger environmental controls that have been enacted by most states. The grandfathered dirty power plants are cheaper to operate, so utilities stand to make billions of dollars by delivering "Coal-By-Wire" to markets in the Northeast. New Federal law helps industry accomplish this goal under the guise of reliability, and despite litigation by states and the concerns of Congress. The new transmission lines in themselves are inefficient because a substantial amount of power is lost in transmitting electricity long distances.

SOME OF THE CONSEQUENCES
 
Mercury Poisoning
Coal-fired power plants are the largest producer of toxic mercury pollution. The primary exposure for Americans occurs from eating contaminated fish. In 2004, 47 states and territories had fish consumption advisories for mercury. Mercury is a developmental toxin causing brain damage, mental retardation, blindness, and other issues, leaving children and women of child bearing age at greatest risk. A recent study found dangerous levels of mercury in 1 in 5 American women.

Particulate Pollution
Coal-fired power plants release about 50% of the nation's particulate pollution. Particle pollution can trigger heart attacks and strokes, lead to cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat), cause respiratory irritation, and worsen asthma. Both short-term and long-term exposure can cause premature death. Fine particulates are responsible for 30 to 50 thousand deaths a year in the United States.

Ozone Pollution
Nationally, only automobiles produce more ozone forming emissions (oxides of nitrogen) than power plants. Research is increasingly linking ozone pollution to the development of asthma in children. Ozone may also be related to premature birth, cardiac birth defects, low birth weight and stunted lung growth. Children and the elderly are most sensitive to this pollution. Ozone pollution is also responsible for decreased visibility, lower agricultural yields and negatively impacts overall tree and plant health.

Sulphur Dioxide Pollution
Coal-fired power plants are responsible for 59% of the sulfur dioxide (SO2) pollution in the U.S., and is directly linked to acid rain. Acid rain changes the pH balance of streams and lakes, ultimately making them unable to support life. Acid rain affects all ecosystems, harms forest heath, plant and animal life, and eats away at man-made monuments and buildings. Long-term acidification continues to threaten the Chesapeake Bay and trout stream habitat. In humans, sulfate particles are ingested in the lungs, causing difficulty breathing, respiratory disease, and death.
 
Carbon Dioxide Emissions
Power plants release over 40% of the total U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, a prime contributor to global warming. Coal-fired power plants are responsible for well over three quarters of that CO2 pollution. Climate Change threatens human populations and ecosystems with worsening heat waves, floods, drought and other extreme weather, and by spreading infectious diseases.

ALTERNATIVES
Energy conservation and efficiency are the most effective solutions, because using less is always cleaner, cheaper, and greener than any new energy source, including renewable. The best megawatt is the one we never have to use. There are countless ways to reduce our energy use through better personal choices and through better planning and governance.  Better community planning, more mass transit, more efficient appliances, changing to efficient lighting and green building are all ways communities can participate in solutions. But industry, especially the utilities that profit from energy consumption, need regulations, mandates, and incentives for conservation and efficiency. The differences are real: each Californian, for example uses roughly half the electricity used by a Virginian. In the Mid-Atlantic region, the American Council For an Energy Efficient Economy estimates that 30% of our future projected peak power electricity demand could be met through cost effective efficiency and conservation measures.

MORE RESOURCES
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