Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
naturally resist becoming disenfranchized, as was evident in the UK dur-
ing the miners' strike of 1984.
The push for cleaner coal
In a way it's rather shocking that it took so long for the world to become
concerned about making coal less dirty and dangerous. Deep under-
ground mining kills several thousand people around the world each year;
surface strip mining requires enormous amount of remedial work to pre-
vent it permanently scarring the landscape; and coal-fired power plants
throw out sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions that require
special control if they are not to contribute to human disease, smog and
tree defoliation.
Some of these bad consequences of coal use are what economists call
“externalities” - meaning a spillover from an activity to those not directly
involved in that activity. In this case, these would be nitrogen oxide from
coal (causing smog) or sulphur dioxide from coal (causing acid rain). But
it took the “globality” of the carbon dioxide coming from coal burning,
causing climate change, to stir global concern.
1. Mining of fuel
2. Coal or gas-fired power
station with CO
2
capture plant
5. CO
2
storage sites.
Diagram showing a process in which carbon
capture and storage can be integrated into
the mining of fossil fuels.
