Exploring the relationship between electricity produced from coal

& environmental impacts in support of wind:

The Richmond Land Trust,Richmond, MA.

Raya Ariella, September 25th 2005

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Thank you for your interest!

"to research, develop, demonstrate and

promote those technologies which have

the least disruptive impact on the natural ecology of the Earth." 

ON COMMON GROUND

Berkshires

Mountain tops

Local ecology

Conservation

Transportation

33%

Electricity Generation

40.5%

Industrial

16.5%

Residential

6%Commercial

4%

Sources of U.S. CO2 emissions (1999)

Silent & invisible killers:

(Massachusetts amounts)

Carbon dioxide13,703,734 tons/yr

Nitrogen oxides22,689 tons/yr

Sulfur dioxides77,496 tons/yr

Mercury232 lbs/yr

Nitrogen oxides & Sulfur dioxide:

Forests

Soils

Aquatic life

Ground level ozone

Mercury:

Forests

Aquatic life

Dangerous neurotoxin

Water: our most valued resourceEach kWh generated from coal

requires up to 27 gallons of water produce

X 11,502,861,000 kilowatt hours*

310,577,247,000 gallons of water per year*

*Residential, commercial and industrial use of electricity produced from coal in 2002For Massachusetts alone.

Carbon dioxide & Higher Temperatures Increased water & air temps

Melting of polar ice

Rise in sea level Change in precipitation

patterns & extreme weather events

Pests & disease migration

Species migration

Species decline

Change in ground water supplies

Rise in sea levels

Other problems associated with

producing electricity from coal

Destroys mountain topsLocal ecology

Destroys communitiesThreatens public health

by polluting: Water

AirSoil

No air emissions

No fuel to mine, transport or store

No cooling water use

No water pollution

No wastes (hazardous, toxic, radioactive, etc)

Wind Power’s Environmental Benefits

Solutions:

•Conservation in tandem with renewables

•Diversity of resources•Live locally

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful

committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing

that ever has.”

Margaret Mead - anthropologist