THE MYTH OF “CLEAN COAL”

The document asserts that "clean coal" is impossible, as the entire coal cycle—from mining to combustion—causes severe damage to health, water, and the climate. It critiques three specific technologies: High Efficiency, Low Emissions (HELE) plants, which only reduce CO2 by up to 20% while increasing costs; Circulating Fluidised Bed (CFB) systems, which increase solid waste and N2O emissions; and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), which remains unproven in South Africa and faces high costs and geological transport challenges. The text highlights that Eskom and Sasol are primary coal users in South Africa, and that wind and solar power are cleaner, cheaper alternatives.

• The coal cycle in South Africa causes severe environmental and health damage during mining and processing, including the loss of arable land, acid mine drainage, dust emissions, and pollution from spontaneous combustion of discard coal stockpiles.
• Coal combustion by Eskom has significant impacts on water and air; in 2017, Eskom consumed approximately 307 million m3 of water for power generation, and PM2.5 pollution from its stations is linked to over 2,200 deaths annually in South Africa.
• High Efficiency, Low Emissions (HELE) plants, including supercritical and ultra-supercritical boiler technology, fail to provide a clean solution as CO2 emissions are reduced by at most 20% and capital and operating costs increase.
• Circulating Fluidised Bed (CFB) combustion systems increase the volume of solid waste and greenhouse gas emissions; for example, the proposed Thabametsi IPP station would discharge 660 tons of ash and spent sorbent for every 1000 tons of coal burnt.
• Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is unproven in South Africa and likely unviable due to high costs, long lead times, and the great distance between the majority of Eskom's power stations in the Mpumalanga Highveld and potential storage sites in the Zululand and Algoa Basins.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (n.d.). THE MYTH OF “CLEAN COAL”. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Myth-of-Clean-Coal-Fact-Sheet_Final_November-2018.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. THE MYTH OF “CLEAN COAL”. n.d. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Myth-of-Clean-Coal-Fact-Sheet_Final_November-2018.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=THE MYTH OF “CLEAN COAL” |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Myth-of-Clean-Coal-Fact-Sheet_Final_November-2018.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centreforenvironmentalrightsndmyth, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{THE MYTH OF “CLEAN COAL”}}, institution = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Myth-of-Clean-Coal-Fact-Sheet_Final_November-2018.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }