The Environmental Protection Agency recently announced a plan to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants by the year 2030. This is excellent news for the environment, as power plant emissions cause global warming, acid rain, mercury poisoning in fish and wildlife, and ozone damage to crops and trees.
But there’s another benefit that should not be overlooked: the plan’s positive impact on human health.
Coal-fired power plants account for some 30 percent of carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. They are also a major source of air pollution, including ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and lung-penetrating fine particulate matter – which contributes to a number of health risks, from asthma and decreased lung function to cardiovascular disease.
Twenty-six million Americans suffer from asthma, seven million of whom are children. Air pollution is major factor in causing and exacerbating asthma. Beyond that, studies suggest that warming temperatures caused by climate change will accelerate ozone formation, compounding respiratory effects.
Lowering coal-fired power plant emissions will serve a dual role in improving our health – by reducing air pollution and by contributing to the fight against climate change and increased temperatures.
While all states will benefit from air improvements, an analysis by researchers at Harvard and Syracuse found that the greatest improvements will occur in the Ohio River Valley and in states in the Rocky Mountain region, areas where air quality currently is poorest.
We still have a long way to go on climate change legislation. But the EPA’s new plan is a significant step in the right direction. And when it is enacted we will all breathe a little easier.
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Web Links
Breathing easier over electricity
Reducing power plant emissions isn’t only about global warming
Photo, posted August 23, 2013, courtesy of MassMatt via Flickr.
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Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Support for Earth Wise comes from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY.