Will Adani’s coal mine in Australia kill 500,000 people in India?

Desdemona Despair

By Graeme Taylor
13 June 2017

(Climate Code Red) – If all goes as Adani plans, coal from its proposed mine in Queensland will produce enough air pollution to kill hundreds of thousands of Indians. Given that this risk is not only known but avoidable, would it be fair to say that the businessmen and politicians developing this mine will be guilty of premeditated mass murder? Here are the facts and the competing arguments: you make the call.

Scientists found that air pollution from coal burnt to generate electricity in India causes the premature deaths of 80,000 to 115,000 people per year from chronic lung conditions, respiratory infections, heart diseases, strokes, bronchitis and trachea and lung cancers. 10,000 of these victims are children under the age of 5. In addition every year tens of millions of cases of asthma and other respiratory ailments are linked to coal pollution including 21 million asthma attacks.

During the 12 month period studied (2011-2012) 503 million tons of thermal coal was burned. Since Adani plans on mining almost five times as much coal in Queensland this massive project could cause half a million premature deaths and 100 million asthma attacks.

These horrifying statistics shouldn’t come as a surprise. Breathing the filthy smog in cities like New Delhi or Beijing is equivalent to smoking one to two packs of cigarettes a day—one in eight people in the world now dies from air pollution. [more]

Will Adani’s coal mine kill 500,000 people?