[neverdem]

America's biggest power source is now coal, which kills about 25,000 people a year through soot in the air.

I wish the folks that make claims like that would provide a believable source or link.

[the right side jedi]

I dont know what the numbers are, but coal plants are more hazardous to people's health than nuclear and have contributed to more deaths than nuclear. The thing is with coal is that it releases a lot more radiation in the waste thorium, uranium, and potassium released. Coal actually releases more energy as waste than it produces because of the radioactivity in the waste. Its in small doses but after decades it accumulates to a level where it has a health impact.

http://www.ornl.gov/info/ornlreview/rev26-34/text/colmain.html

I am not sure about the numbers on how much coal kills per year. 25k seems a bit high.