Positive Aspects

Negative Aspects

Abundance

• Coal can be found all over the world, and on every continent
• Coal is the most widely distributed of all the fossil fuels
• There are currently more than 909,064 million tons of coal reserves worldwide

(1)

Environmental Effects

• The mining process of coal results in the release of greenhouse gasses, including carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere
• Many radioactive elements, like uranium and thorium are produced as byproducts to the coal mining process
•  Coal sediment may leech into water systems as a result of excessive mining, and contaminate water supplies
• Area required for coal mining displaces and destroys a lot of wildlife

Cost

• Because coal is so readily available, the cost of coal also drops
• When compared to the other fossil fuels, coal costs much less to mine and process:

                   -  Coal costs approximately $1.20/million BTU, whereas oil                         costs $4.45 and natural gas costs $4.30

(2)

Nonrenewable Resource

• Although plentiful today, coal reserves are only projected to sustain another 300 years of usage at our current rate
• Fossil fuels are contributing to more than 80% of the total energy used worldwide; should coal run out, this would be a global catastrophe

Versatility

• Coal can be used in many forms
• Coal can be used in it's solid form to generate electricity by being pulverized and then burned in a furnace
• Coal and natural gas are sometimes combusted to produce ethanol
• Through gasification, coal can also be turned into a syngas, which can be turned into gasoline or diesel through the Fischer-Tropsch process 

Health Problems

• Coal mines themselves are very dangerous to work in
• Mines can be very unstable and periodically release methane and coal dust which may be inhaled by the workers
• Pockets of methane are highly flammable and any small spark can set off an explosion
• Prolonged periods of working in mines has also been proven to lead to "Black lung" or "Coal Worker's pneumoconiosis"