The last part of the series looking at the clean coal myth, showing why there is no such thing as clean coal by examining the dangers and problems with storing deadly carbon dioxide gas underground.
In the first part of our series on the clean coal myth, we looked at what exactly is meant by the term clean coal and what technologies or methods are being used in the industry that has been coined “clean coal”. In this final part of the series, we take a look at a key element of that process which involves the storing of CO2 to see what the environmental and safety issues are with the cap and store method utilized by so called clean coal plants.
What Will So Called Clean Coal Plants Do With the CO2 Emissions?
Clean coal proponents claim that capping some of the emissions of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) from coal burning plants and storing that hazardous greenhouse gas underground will make coal clean. As we have already discussed, this simply is not true. Even with this technology a dangerous amount of CO2 will still be put into the atmosphere polluting the air and worsening the greenhouse effect. But in addition to this, the proposal of underground storage of CO2 presents several other problems and hazards involved in both the actual capture and transport of this deadly gas into the underground storage areas as well as the storage itself.
Can You Safely Pump Carbon Dioxide Underground?
First, we will look at the process of actually pumping Carbon Dioxide underground. The industry proposes that this gas should be stored in underground coal seams. However, pumping the gas into these coal seams presents a variety of dangers. Many of these areas have concentrations of methane gas, another lethal and extremely volatile greenhouse gas. The pumping of Carbon Dioxide into these seams can release the deadly methane into the area contaminating the atmosphere and proposing substantial risk to humans and other life around the areas.
This also runs the risk of leaking not only toxic gas but dangerous metals and other elements that may exist in the coal seams that can contaminate not only the air but the soil and ground water sources as well. Since the majority of drinking water available for humans comes from ground water sources which are already being threatened this could be a serious problem.
The "Clean Coal" Myth-Looking at the Dirty Business of Coal
Is coal really the clean abundant energy source that the propaganda says that it is? This three part series will take a look at coal, the "clean coal" techniques, and the dangers that make coal a dirty business.