2024 Toll from Coal Health Impacts Methodology

The 2024 Toll from Coal analysis uses the U.S. EPA's COBRA v5.2 model to link emissions of PM2.5, SO2, NOx, and VOC from coal-fired power plants to health outcomes and economic damages across the continental United States. Comparing 2024 data to 2019, the analysis finds that reported NOx and SO2 emissions fell by more than one-third, while direct PM2.5 and VOC emissions decreased by one-quarter. These emission reductions are associated with a decline in all-cause mortality from PM2.5 exposure (from 6,700 to 5,100 deaths) and non-fatal heart attacks (from 2,750 to 1,670). However, ozone exposure was still associated with nearly 1,500 deaths in 2024. Total health damages in 2024 were valued at $100 billion in 2023 dollars.

• The analysis utilizes the U.S. EPA's COBRA v5.2 screening model, which uses a source-receptor matrix to link emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxide (NOx), fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and volatile organic carbon (VOC) to ambient ozone and PM2.5 at the county level.
• Between 2019 and 2024, reported emissions from coal-fired power plants decreased, with NOx and SO2 falling by more than one-third and direct PM2.5 and VOC falling by one-quarter.
• COBRA modeling indicates that the reduction in emissions led to a decrease in all-cause mortality from PM2.5 exposure, falling from 6,700 to 5,100 deaths, and a decrease in non-fatal heart attacks from 2,750 to 1,670.
• Despite overall emission declines, ozone exposure associated with coal-fired power plant emissions was linked to nearly 1,500 deaths in 2024.
• The economic value of overall health damages in 2024 was estimated at $100 billion (in 2023 dollars), compared to $72 billion in 2019 (in 2016 dollars).

APA

Clean Air Task Force (2024). 2024 Toll from Coal Health Impacts Methodology. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/27122659/2024-toll-from-coal-methodology.pdf

Chicago

Clean Air Task Force. 2024 Toll from Coal Health Impacts Methodology. 2024. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/27122659/2024-toll-from-coal-methodology.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Clean Air Task Force |title=2024 Toll from Coal Health Impacts Methodology |date=2024 |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/27122659/2024-toll-from-coal-methodology.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cleanairtaskforce20242024, author = {{Clean Air Task Force}}, title = {{2024 Toll from Coal Health Impacts Methodology}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2024}, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/27122659/2024-toll-from-coal-methodology.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }