Backgrounder: Alberta Coal Plants, Climate Change & Human Health

This fact sheet from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment outlines the link between Alberta's reliance on coal-fired power plants, greenhouse gas emissions, and the resulting impacts of climate change on human health both globally and within Alberta.

• Alberta's electricity sector is heavily dependent on coal, burning more coal for power than the rest of Canada combined. In 2014, coal provided 68 per cent of the province's electricity. The province operates six coal plants with 18 generators, possessing a combined capacity exceeding 6,200 MW, with individual generator capacities ranging from 150 MW to 495 MW.
• Alberta's six coal plants are significant contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In 2011, these plants emitted approximately 43 megatonnes (MT) of GHG, which represented about 18% of the province's total emissions—a volume equivalent to all of Alberta's oil sands operations combined.
• Canada has experienced warming at a rate higher than the global average, with the annual average air temperature increasing by about 1.7°C between 1948 and 2012. Warming is most pronounced in the north and west, particularly during spring and winter; Northern Canada's warming rate since the late 1940s is two-and-a-half times the global average.
• Climate change is projected to have severe global health impacts, including an estimated 250,000 additional deaths per year between 2030 and 2050. These deaths are attributed to childhood under-nutrition (95,000), malaria (60,000), diarrhoea (48,000), and heat exposure in elderly people (38,000).
• In Alberta, climate change is expected to increase the severity and frequency of heat waves, thunderstorms, hailstorms, and tornadoes, while also raising levels of pollen and smog. Heavier rainfall may lead to drinking water contamination and outbreaks of foodborne and waterborne diseases. A 2013 flooding event in Alberta displaced over 100,000 people and caused costs likely exceeding $5 billion.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (n.d.). Backgrounder: Alberta Coal Plants, Climate Change & Human Health. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/CAPE-Backgrounder-Alberta-Coal-Plants-Climate-Change-Health-2015.pdf#new_tab

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Backgrounder: Alberta Coal Plants, Climate Change & Human Health. n.d. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/CAPE-Backgrounder-Alberta-Coal-Plants-Climate-Change-Health-2015.pdf#new_tab.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Backgrounder: Alberta Coal Plants, Climate Change & Human Health |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/CAPE-Backgrounder-Alberta-Coal-Plants-Climate-Change-Health-2015.pdf#new_tab |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironmentndbackgrounder, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Backgrounder: Alberta Coal Plants, Climate Change \& Human Health}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/CAPE-Backgrounder-Alberta-Coal-Plants-Climate-Change-Health-2015.pdf#new_tab}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }