Coal industry should pay to monitor human cost of pollution

As the Abbott government forges ahead with plans to pin Australia’s energy hopes almost entirely on fossil fuels, the Climate Council has called on the government to properly account for the cost of coal mining and coal-fired electricity generation to human and environmental health.

The joint statement released on Wednesday – signed by Tim Flannery and Fiona Stanley (Climate Council) and Dr Liz Hanna of the Climate and Health Alliance, representing 27 health organisations – argues that despite the risks from digging up and burning coal for power generation being well documented – lung cancer, bronchitis, asthma, heart disease – there has been a poor response to this from industry and government.

“A comprehensive review of the literature has found a serious lack of consistent monitoring of air, water and soil quality at and around Australian coal mines,” the report says.

“Further there is a stark deficiency in the research into the effects of coal on Australian communities. Given the extensive work done overseas to quantify the risks and the impacts of coal burning and mining, Australia is well behind similar countries world-wide in understanding the impacts on our population.”

China springs to mind. Last year, the government shelved an enormous 2GW coal project over pollution concerns. And just last month, Beijing announced that six of its major districts would stop using coal and its related products, and close coal-fired power plants and other coal facilities, by 2020 – again, in the name of cutting pollution.

Meanwhile, in Australia, the federal government has been more interested in investigating the as-yet unfounded health concerns surrounding wind farms. Reports suggest Abbott has plans to pursue yet another independent investigation into the issue, despite his government having already hosted a Senate inquiry, and received a report effectively dismissing the matter from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).

But for coal, upon which Australia depends for 75 per cent of its electricity supply, there has been “scant research” into the associated health impacts of its use in mining and power generation, says the Climate Council report – and that is despite these impacts costing Australian taxpayers an estimated $2.6 billion annually.

The letter calls for urgent, independent and consistent monitoring of air, water and soil quality at and around every coal mine and power station in Australia – paid for by the coal industry.

It also wants adequate funding allocated for research into health, social and environmental impacts of coal in coal mining communities, and proper consideration of coal’s human health risks, to be accounted for in all energy and resources policy and investment decisions.