Radiation Exposure
Coal also contains low levels of uranium, thorium, and other naturally occurring radioactive isotopes whose release into the environment may lead to radioactive contamination. Coal plants emit radiation in the form of radioactive fly ash which is inhaled and ingested by neighbours, and incorporated into crops. A 1978 paper from Oak Ridge National Laboratory estimated that coal-fired power plants of that time may contribute a whole-body committed dose of 19 µSv/yr to their immediate neighbours in a 500 m radius. The United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation's 1988 report estimated the committed dose 1 km away to be 20 µSv/yr for older plants or 1µSv/yr for newer plants with improved fly ash capture, but was unable to confirm these numbers by test. A single PWR spent fuel bundle, after 10 years cooldown, with no shielding, emits 2.3 MSv/yr, a trillion times more than coal. However, if we exclude contained waste and ignore unintentional releases from nuclear plants, coal-plants carry more radioactive wastes into the environment than nuclear plants producing the same amount of energy. Plant-emitted radiation carried by coal-derived fly ash delivers 100 times more radiation to the surrounding environment than does the normal operation of a similarly productive nuclear plant. This comparison does not consider the rest of the fuel cycle, i.e., coal and uranium mining and refining and waste disposal.
Read more about this topic: Environmental Impact Of The Coal Industry
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