"Coal pollutants affect all major body organ systems and contribute to four of the five leading causes of mortality in the United States: heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory diseases, concludes a scathing report issued today by Physicians for Social Responsibility.

'Each step of the coal lifecycle -- mining, transportation, washing, combustion, and disposing of postcombustion wastes -- impacts human health,' warns the report, entitled 'Coal's Assault on Human Health.'

In addition, the report states, 'the discharge of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere associated with burning coal is a major contributor to global warming and its adverse effects on health worldwide.'

'This conclusion emerges from our reassessment of the widely recognized health threats from coal,' says the Nobel Prize winning group of medical professionals, which calls itself the medical and public health voice for policies to prevent nuclear war and proliferation and to slow, stop and reverse global warming."

Environment News Service had the story November 18, 2009. [2]