Clean Coal? Myth or Reality
Coal is one of the greatest contributors to global pollution on the planet. Cracking down on coal usage has been a great concern for environmentalists because of the negative effects it can have in the air, groundwater and surface water. Clean Coal does exist but the term is being used as an excuse to ignore the destruction coal mines and factories cause without any backlash. We can get close to having the entire United States using clean coal but even then, the price and risks involved (for the plant companies) does not encourage any change.
Coal mining is mainly used to create electricity, and this makes it very valuable to everyone who has access to electricity. The main problems that stem from mining are pollution and destruction of environments caused by machinery or factories. Coal burning can produce many dangerous or harmful chemicals which get released into the atmosphere. These chemicals include, “Sulfur Dioxide (So2), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx), Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Mercury and other metals” (U.S. Energy Information Administration, Emissions from coal explained, Nov 6, 2022). Ash can also find its way into the air because burning coal creates a large amount of it. All coal will have at least a small amount of materials that pollute the earth when burned, it is up to people to figure out how to mitigate or completely stop the spread of these harmful materials.
The United States has tried in the past to create more environmentally sustainable coal plants (only one exists). The technology being used is called Carbon Capture and Storage. “Only one coal plant in the United States, the Petra Nova project in Texas, actually captures CO2 in this fashion” (Plumer, pg.2). The United States only has one of these more sustainable plants and it was very expensive to create. It cost an estimated total of “one billion dollars” (Mattie, pg.1) according to The Institute of Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Even worse for the plant and for the future of carbon gathering coal plants, the project is considered a failure on multiple levels.
Clean coal will have to be cheap and inexpensive for plants to ever stand a chance in the United States as it stands. Another approach that one can take is attempting to make it illegal to run a plant which does not reduce the harmful substances produced by coal plants but this has not been successful. The largest barriers environmentalists have in creating clean coal (or other clean forms of energy) is the price and efficiency differences between clean and dirty energy creation. A regular coal plant will not have to waste money or precious resources on materials or staff that are connected with protecting the environment if they are trying to work with coal optimally. The incentive (money) to create cheap energy is much higher than that of creative clean energy (protecting the planet). Unfortunately this has led us to a place where the United States only has one plant that tries to keep the environment clean but this will have to change in the future.
In the not so far future technology will hopefully get to a level of technological advancement where it will be cheap and effective to use over conventional coal powered plants. Unfortunately, this process will require funding and interest from people working in the government because research and trials are expensive. Clean Coal is real because the dream of using coal without any negative side effects is real. The problem is that clean coal is not real yet and for the meantime we should focus on creating more reusable energy instead of coal based energy until the technology progresses.
Work Cited:
United States. U.S. Energy Information Administration EIA Emissions From Coal Explained, Nov 6, 2022 https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/coal/coal-and-the-environment.php#:~:text=Sulfur%20dioxide%20(SO2)%2C,respiratory%20illnesses%20and%20lung%20disease
Plumer, B. (2017, August 23). What ‘clean coal’ is—and isn’t. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/23/climate/what-clean-coal-is-and-isnt.html
Mattie Susan and Schlissel David The ill-fated Petra Nova CCS project: NRG Energy throws in the towel October 5 2022 https://ieefa.org/resources/ill-fated-petra-nova-ccs-project-nrg-energy-throws-towel
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