What else does coal damage besides your lungs? and i kno its not good 4 the environment but be specific plz!!!
2007-03-01 11:25:26 · 5 answers · asked by BLR. 1 in Environment
If a chunk falls on your toe it will make your toe hurt.
Burning coal emits sulfur dioxide into the air leading to the formation of acid rain.
Burning coal also emits carbon dioxide into the air. CO2 is believed to play a major role in global warming.
Drainage from coal mines pollutes rivers and streams.
Mining coal is hard, dangerous, work that kills and injures people every year. Not to mention the black lung disease you are eluding to in your question.
2007-03-01 11:39:31 · answer #1 · answered by Lost in PA 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just how is it not good for the environment? Last time I checked it came from the environment and was created by natural processes. Also without coal you would not be asking this question since most of the power generated comes from coal plants. So if you believe the garbage you are being spoon fed then turn off your computer since it is using power and destroying the environment
2007-03-01 22:59:13 · answer #2 · answered by dennis s 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It all depends on how coal is used. At this time no one uses coal in a way that will not harm the environment but it can be used that way.
2007-03-01 19:31:52 · answer #3 · answered by jim m 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The burning of coal in power stations, at the moment, releases VAST amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere. This gas combines with other molecules in the air to form a nasty invisible cloud which seems to be keeping our atmosphere from being cleansed by the natural processes which have been going on for the last 4 1/2 billion years - the best estimate for the length of time this little blue - green planet's been here. I say "at the moment" because there are plenty of ways in which we could clean the emissions from power stations, but they're expensive to install.
This cloud or shield isn't allowing an escape of the heat which all us humans and our various manufacturing and transport and living processes are creating. This is affecting our climate by warming the planet, melting ice caps and generally stuffing up the natural processes like the huge currents which circulate water around. The El Nino Southern Oscillation (or ENSO as the climatologists know it) is one of these - an enormous "river" of water which flows from the Arctic next to Alaska, down the west coast of the Americas to travel past Antartica. Then it swings north and passes by the east coast of my country, Australia, passes by Japan and finally ends up back where it started. On this journey it collects cold waters from the Arctic which are warmed as they pass the Americas which are cooled by the Antarctic ice...the process is then reversed as it heads north...
Our fooling with the climate (burning coal and driving cars are 2 BIG ones) affects this by producing way too much heat for the ENSO currents to deal with...the heat is trapped rather than being vented into space and voila! We've got problems. Big ones...
What to do? there ARE a few things that you and I CAN do:
1. Stop driving cars. Use public transport. We desperately need to stop our addiction to the Car!!
2. instal energy-efficient light globes and appliances. Use gas instead of electric toasters and kettles...
3. Buy "green" power. It's not coming from solar or wind directly, but the premium you pay to use this is going to subsidise people who can convert their homes to non-coal sources of energy.
4. Buy your goods from local producers. This cuts down on the neccessity for long-distance transport - another greenhouse-gas producing process.
There's HEAPS of other things YOU can do...and there's plenty of resources on the net if you're serious about helping!!
Hope this is of help to you!
Love and Light,
Jarrah
2007-03-01 19:58:18 · answer #4 · answered by jarrah_fortytwo 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Paper plates!
2007-03-01 19:30:14 · answer #5 · answered by tom g 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋