What is the sanitary cost of coal? While 24% of European electricity is produced by coal-fired power stations, four NGOs (Climate Action Network, Alliance for Health and Environment HEAL, Sandbag and WWF) have looked into the impact of this energy on the health of inhabitants of the European Union (EU). In a report titled Europe’s black cloud: how coal-consuming countries are poisoning their neighbors, the associations draw a gloomy assessment of the pollution due to this fuel. Thus, in 2013, EU coal-fired power plants would have caused 22,900 premature deaths and a health cost of 32 to 62 billion euros.
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NGOs have in fact identified 11,800 new cases of chronic bronchitis and 21,000 hospitalizations attributable to charcoal in 2013. “Burning coal generates fine particlestoxic that can be transported over great distances, far from the plant, beyond the borders of the countries where they are located“, explain the NGOs in this report. First countries at the origin of this air pollution: Germany and Poland, which derive the majority of their electricity from coal energy. Thus, these two nations are respectively responsible for 2 500 and 4,700 premature deaths outside their borders per year, according to the four NGOs, while the Dutch power stations cause 200 premature deaths per year, the Romanians 1,600, the British 1,300, as well as the Czechs. The country most affected by fine coal particle pollution would be France, with 1,200 premature deaths per year mainly caused by German, British, Polish, Spanish and Czech power stations.
Gradually shutting down EU coal plants
The NGOs therefore recommend the abandonment of this fossil fuel. The United Kingdom, for example, has planned to close its coal-fired power stations by 2025, which would save 2,900 lives each year on its territory and beyond its borders but also save 4 to 7.7 billion dollars. ‘euros in health costs, according to an estimate of associations. These have identified the 30 most polluting power stations across the EU, mainly located in Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom and Spain, and recommend shutting them down as a matter of priority. “Gradually shutting down coal-fired power stations, with adequate aid for mining regions affected by the transition from coal-fired energy to renewable energies, will free EU countries from a significant health burden and is the only way to avoid worst impacts of climate change“conclude the NGOs.
Last February, a study estimated that more than 5.5 million the number of deaths due to indoor and outdoor air pollutionin the world.
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