Environmental Issues Affecting Coal Technology: A Perspective on US Trends

Abstract

A perspective on environmental issues affecting US coal-fired power plants requires more than a chronology of events. It also should reflect on how and why these events occur, and on their actual and potential consequences. This paper surveys several related trends that illustrate the dynamic equilib­ rium between US environmental concerns and electric power production from coal-fired power plants. It discusses these trends as evolutionary, often dialectic, processes over four time periods: the 1960s-an awakening; the 1970s-an expanded awareness; the 1980s-a time of transition; and toward the 21st century. The theme is coal-fired power plants because (a) they produce more than half the electricity generated in the United States, using about 85% of the nation's coal production; (b) coal is likely to be an increasingly important fuel for a global economy growing ever more dependent on electricity; and (c) environmental specifications have become a dominant consideration in the design and operation of coal-fired power plants. Figure 1 summarizes the history of environmental control requirements for US coal-fired power plants in terms of their shares of overall control efficiencies. For example, pollution control requirements for a coal-frred power plant today contribute 30% or more to its capital and operating cost (la-c). From 1969 to 1982 the US electric utility industry invested about $30.3 billion in environmental protection facilities. Of the total, air pollution control contributed about $15.2 billion, or roughly half. Because of the major impact