For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com. For each plant, EPA summarized population percentages ofsix key demographics and demographic indexfor the neighboring communities located within three miles of each plant. Those NOx emissions may linger in nearby communities, leading to serious health problems for the people living near plants. Natural gas is a relatively clean burning fossil fuel. This method assumes that pregnant women stayed at those same addresses throughout their pregnancy. Moshammer
Natural gas transmission pipelines are wide-diameter pipelines and are often the long-distance portion of natural gas pipeline systems that connect gathering systems in producing areas, natural gas processing plants, and other receipt points to the main consumer service areas. H
Natural gas storage during periods of low demand helps to ensure that enough natural gas is available during periods of high demand. TH
Biodiesel, renewable diesel, and other biofuels, U.S. Some layersare not visible until the map is zoomed in. As noted in the Data Considerations section, information about the adjacent communities can be used to raise awareness and to help people understand the extent to which there may be disproportionate, adverse impacts on overburdened communities. Populations found to be particularly vulnerable to environmental pollution include the poor, the elderly, the very young, those already in poor health, and/or indigenous populations. Holstrom compared the gas volume to filling a pro-basketball stadium, from floor to ceiling, with explosive gas. When stratified for different types of power plants, the results remained generally consistent. You may have heard that natural gas is clean. Compared to coal, natural gas produces less global warming emissions and air pollution. For example, the fact that our study showed an increased proportion of females among the term LBW group and a decreased proportion of females among the PTD and VPTD groups confirmed previous findings. Reports requested by congress or otherwise deemed important. Albaladejo
They included mother's age (continuous), maternal education (less than high school, high school graduate and/or some college, college graduate, graduate school), maternal race (white, black, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, and others), and marital status (married, unmarried). Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Holland
When hydrogen is added to the natural gas fuel mix, the carbon emissions fall even more.
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The Author 2015.
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Distance from the nearest power plants was measured in kilometers. To help answer questions about environmental justice in the communities around power plants, information on the following six key demographics (e.g., demographic indicators) and demographic index (average of low-income and people of colorpopulations) ispresented below through interactive maps and graphs: These key demographics and information about nearby fossil fuel power plants can be used as a general indicator of a communitys potential susceptibility to these types of environmental exposures. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
et al.
Comprehensive data summaries, comparisons, analysis, and projections integrated across all energy sources. Workers might also use air, steam, nitrogen, or water *in lieu of natural gas. JD
and a University of Florida Graduate School fellowship (S.H.). In addition, our observation that pregnant women who had a lower level of education, were racial minorities and unmarried, had no prenatal care, used tobacco, and smoked during pregnancy were more likely to be in the adverse birth outcome groups is also consistent with the literature (3840). One may argue that potential confounding may be caused by other variables that we did not adjust for. These analyses showed consistent results, suggesting that residual confounding was unlikely. Table3 presents the adjusted associations between proximity to power plants and term LBW, PTD, and VPTD by nearest power plant type.
More information about the Power Plant Retirements map can be foundhere. Association Between Number of Plants Within 20 km, by Fuel Type, and Adverse Birth Outcomes in Florida From 2004 to 2005. a Adjusted for maternal age, maternal race, maternal education, marital status, census block group income, and urban neighborhood. Caton
et al. Initial calculations conducted by the USB determined that about 400,000 standard cubic feet of natural gas had been released into the atmosphere within the 10 minutes prior to the incident. This is especially true because the by-products of coal plants also include toxic components including sulfur dioxide and nitric oxides, all of which are also associated with negative health outcomes (32). A recent risk analysis estimated that particulate matter less than 2.5 m in diameter (PM2.5) and ozone, estimated from the 2005 air quality level, were responsible for 130,000 and 4,700 excess deaths, respectively (9). et al. We also compared the odds for different buffer sizes of <5, 59.9, 1019.9, and 20 km from a power plant. Power Plants and Neighboring Communities (xlsx) Graphs below summarize the key demographics ofcommunities within three miles ofpower plants. Williams
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This almost-great Raspberry Pi alternative is missing one key feature, This $75 dock turns your Mac Mini into a Mac Studio (sort of), Samsung's Galaxy S23 Plus is the Goldilocks of its 2023 smartphone lineup, How the New Space Race Will Drive Innovation, How the metaverse will change the future of work and society, Digital transformation: Trends and insights for success, Software development: Emerging trends and changing roles. Mark Specht is the Western States Energy Manager/Senior Analyst for the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists. The following maps and graphs highlight powerplants located in or near communities with one or more of the six key demographics at or above the 80thpercentile nationally. In conclusion, our study found evidence of increased odds of adverse birth outcomes among women who lived closer to power plants. Would it be safe to live on land that once belonged to a nuclear power plant if that plant had no accidents? If everything had been done properly t S
et al. et al. You can explore the distribution of all plants for a particular demographic by selecting the label or bar for the demographic.
Steve Clemmer
et al. In Natural gas delivery infrastructure has three categories: Natural gas transported on the mainline natural gas transportation (pipeline) system in the United States must meet specific quality measures so that the pipeline network (or grid) provides uniform-quality natural gas. Ghosh
Our continuous exposure analysis showed that proximity to nuclear plants was protective against PTD, but not term LBW or VPTD. P
Specifically, for each 5-km decrease in the distance to any power plant, the odds of term LBW, PTD, and VPTD increased by 1.1% (odds ratio (OR) = 1.011, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.002, 1.020), 1.8% (OR = 1.018, 95% CI: 1.013, 1.023), and 2.2% (OR = 1.022, 95% CI: 1.010, 1.034), respectively. For controls, we used eligible births that had none of the 3 outcomes we assessed.
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The following are the required setbacks to minimize exposure at different distances: 100 feet for 50 to 133kV transmission line 150 feet for 220 to 230kV transmission line 350 feet for 500 to 550kV transmission line JM
Lanki
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et al. The association between adverse birth outcomes and total number of power plants within 20 km was determined. WebAs long as you follow sensible natural gas safety precaution and understand what to do in a gas leak, natural gas is safe in the home.
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Liu
The United States uses three main types of underground natural gas storage facilities: U.S. Energy Information Administration, 1000 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20585, Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS).
First, analysis of proximity as both a continuous variable and as a categorical variable addresses exposure-response relationships, but it does so in different ways with different assumptions. If something happens to go wrong at a nuclear reactor, anyone living in a 10-mile radius of the plant may Lee
et al.
The graph below displays the number of plants located in or near communities which meet or exceed the 80thpercentile nationally for each key demographic. et al. JI
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A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. Maps, tools, and resources related to energy disruptions and infrastructure. The pamphlet I got in the mail the other day shows drawings that include three gas turbines, three step up transformers, gas compressor building and three stack towers coming off the turbines. In populous cities, the percentage of deaths attributable to PM2.5 and ozone ranges from 3.5% in San Jose to 10% in Los Angeles (both in California) (9). During the study period, power plants in the United States emitted an estimated annual average of 2,491,971 metric tons of carbon dioxide, 10,431 metric tons of sulfur dioxide, and 4,212 metric tons of nitric oxides (27).
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We also found that gas and oil plants had a positive association with adverse birth outcomes, especially PTD and VPTD. FHA insures home mortgages to help Americans buy homes. When you sign up you'll become a member of NRDC's Activist Network. EPA is committed to Environmental Justice (EJ) - the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people. Can living near a nuclear power plant cause cancer? Fetal sex and preterm birth: Are males at greater risk? TA
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The interactive map below shows recent and expected coal, natural gas, oil, and other combustion power plant retirements. When stratified by fuel type, coal had the strongest association with all adverse birth outcomes.
Though UCSs legislative effort did not succeed this year, UCS is committed to finding solutions that allow us to transition away from natural gas in a way that is not only economical, but also equitable. The national average for each demographic is shown in parentheses. SC
Some power plants also
The lack of consistent associations between nuclear plants and adverse birth outcomes is consistent with results from several previous studies, which showed no association between distance to nuclear power plants and adverse birth outcomes (1719, 34). Oil and gas production poses all those risks. Simpson
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A three-mile radius isconsistent with environmental justice literature and studies, including theEJ Screening Reportfor the Clean Power Plan.
WebA gas-fired power plant is a type of fossil fuel power station in which chemical energy stored in natural gas, which is mainly methane, is converted successively into: thermal energy, mechanical energy and, finally, electrical energy.Although they cannot exceed the Carnot cycle limit for conversion of heat energy into useful work the excess heat may be used in
et al. Prenatal exposure to particulate matter less than 2.5 m in diameter for women living near different types of power plants was also determined by using National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network data. Our results for covariates were consistent with those of other studies. Women who lived closer to coal and solid waste power plants were exposed to higher levels of particulate matter less than 2.5 m in diameter compared with other types. However, women may have moved during pregnancy, leading to potential exposure misclassification. These results call for further investigation to confirm our results and to investigate the specific pollutants generated from power plants that are responsible for this association. To explore the state-level data, click on a state tosee the number of plants located in communities above the80thpercentile for each of the six key demographics and then click on a demographic to see the distribution of plants across the entire range of percentiles.
Updated March 27, 2012. G
Chang
Thanks for signing up. However, we have also used a fully adjusted model with all covariates in our directed acyclic graph. A
When natural gas arrives at the locations where it will be used (usually through large pipelines), it flows into smaller diameter pipelines called mains and then into smaller service lines that go directly to homes or buildings. After an examination into the Kleen Energy explosion that killed six workers last month, a U.S. Chemical Safety Board investigator expresses concerns over one of the industry's standard practices. The percentage of plants located in or near communitieswithan average of less than the national average is on the left side of the graph (blue).
a Adjusted for maternal age, maternal race, marital status, census block group income, and urban neighborhood. Two logistic regression models were used for each outcome: The first model was unadjusted, and the second model was a parsimonious model adjusted for potential confounders on the basis of our directed acyclic graph (Supplementary Data). Director of Energy Research & Analysis, Guillermo Pereira We wish to thank the Florida Department of Health for supplying the data.
VPTD was defined as a birth that occurred before 32 weeks of gestation.
update email soon. For VPTD, only oil and solid waste plants had significant associations. Pope
et al. Xu
Given that PM2.5 is a measurable air pollutant and a major component of power plant emissions (21), as well as its consistent associations with adverse birth outcomes (22, 23), PM2.5 can serve as a good indicator for air pollution from power plants.
As paradoxical as it may sound, California may continue to achieve its global warming emissions reduction goals and increase air pollution from natural gas power plants at the same time. Manzanares
H
. Explore additional graphs that show distributions of generation and emissions for each of the demographics.
Reply STOP to cancel. Accessed December 17, 2014, Association between gaseous ambient air pollutants and adverse pregnancy outcomes in Vancouver, Canada, Ambient air pollution and term birth weight in Texas from 1998 to 2004, Traffic-related air toxics and term low birth weight in Los Angeles County, California, Association between local traffic-generated air pollution and preeclampsia and preterm delivery in the south coast air basin of California, Emissions of Hazardous Air Pollutants from Coal-fired Power Plants, Exposure to air pollution during different gestational phases contributes to risks of low birth weight, Congenital abnormalities and indicators of germinal mutations in the vicinity of the Paks nuclear plant, Hungary, Risk factors for low birth weight: a review. The term LBW was defined as a birth weighing less than 2,500 g at birth and born at or after 37 weeks of gestation. HS
After exclusion of births that had addresses outside Florida (n = 4,672); births that were missing address (n = 423), unable to geocode (e.g., only post office box available, n = 563), missing gestational age (n = 937), and multiple births (n = 13,686); and those with birth weight out of range (i.e., <500 and >5,000 g) (n = 903) and those with gestational age out of range (i.e., <140 days and >320 days) (n = 125), 423,719 births remained for analyses. UCS recently co-sponsored a bill in the California legislature that was designed to shed light on pollution from natural gas power plants and require better planning for pollution reductions from plants. However, proximity was our best available surrogate for exposure, and it potentially captures all the pollutants emitted by different types of power plants.
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Lets plan for a clean energy future that does not lead to even more air pollution in communities already afflicted with pollution. Wellhead natural gas may contain contaminants and hydrocarbon gas liquids (HGLs) that must be removed before the natural gas can be safely delivered to the high
Quantifying the risk
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its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends.
Moreover, these associations showed an exposure-response relationship with closer residents having the higher odds. Furthermore, among the case groups, the percentages of women who had lower education, were black, lived in neighborhoods with lower income, were unmarried, had no prenatal care, smoked, or drank alcohol during pregnancy were higher compared with those in the control group (Table1). Cifuentes
Bremner
We obtained the odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for the increase in odds of having adverse birth outcomes for each 5 km closer to any power plant. The CSB is trying to devise better safety codes for gas blows, but has yet to identify them.
Natural gas typically moves from production sites (natural gas and oil wells) through a network of small-diameter gathering pipelines to natural gas processing plants for treatment.
We further stratify these associations by fuel type. But coal is just about the dirtiest way to produce electricity, so almost anything will seem cleaner in comparison. Zeitlin
Sales, revenue and prices, power plants, fuel use, stocks, generation, trade, demand & emissions. N
et al. There are a lot of factors that you need to consider. Different countries have a different regulation regarding the measurements of where to reside
These pollutants are known to contribute to adverse health outcomes, including the development of heart or lung diseases, such as asthma and bronchitis, increased susceptibility to respiratory and cardiac symptoms, greater numbers of emergency room visits and hospital admissions, and premature deaths.
Now, I know that 1% does not sound like very much, but give me a moment to explain why this is still significant. Ha
Seen here in photos before and after the accident, the 620-megawatt Kleen Energy plant had been slated to open this summer. Some women may spend most of their time outside their residential home; therefore, their exposure may be different from that estimated. Bell
Natural gas is stored in large volumes in underground facilities and in smaller volumes in tanks above or below ground. The final reason to be concerned about pollution from natural gas power plants is that it may get worse in the coming years. Subscribe to feeds for updates on EIA products including Today in Energy and What's New. Overall, living close to solid waste, oil, and gas plants increased the odds for term LBW, PTD, and VPTD. Bronson
Some places in the country, however, still have setbacks for homes that are less then 300 feet. Valero De Bernab
Since then, researchers have further studied this association, including in the California Power Line Study, a 2016 study in the British Journal of Cancer.
Closing large fossil fuel-fired plants may have immediate and lasting effects on the surrounding communities and should be considered when evaluating a community's future potential vulnerability for environmental justice concerns. Energy & Financial Markets: What Drives Crude Oil Prices? These data are based on the US Environmental Protection Agency's Hierarchical Bayesian Prediction Model output (25). Union of Concerned Scientists See the health effects of ozoneand particulate matter pollution. Checking with the relevant authorities is good.The standard However, the distance from the line is crucial in determining the damage it causes. J
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Which states consume and produce the most natural gas. To describe exposures to PM2.5 during pregnancy and throughout the study period according to nearest power plants, we used scatterplots with locally weighted scatterplot smoothing (LOESS) functions (smooth = 0.5) to display averaged daily concentrations during the first trimester (y-axis) by date of delivery (x-axis), as well as daily concentrations (y-axis) by date during the study period (x-axis). Sandie Ha, Hui Hu, Jeffrey Roth, Haidong Kan, Xiaohui Xu, Associations Between Residential Proximity to Power Plants and Adverse Birth Outcomes, American Journal of Epidemiology, Volume 182, Issue 3, 1 August 2015, Pages 215224, https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwv042. Demand for these electric plants is increasing, and the thousands of workers who will be constructing them, and working in them, will rely on better protocols and oversight for their safety. Workers might also use air, steam, nitrogen, or water * lieu. 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Power plant type problems for the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists the! Distance from the nearest power plants, the carbon emissions fall even more covariates! The Western States Energy Manager/Senior Analyst for the Climate & Energy program the. Happens to go wrong at a nuclear power plant type and 20 km was determined controls! It be safe to live on land that once belonged to a reactor. Are less then 300 feet from that estimated ofsix key demographics ofcommunities within three miles ofpower plants not until..., steam, nitrogen, or water * in lieu of natural gas fuel mix, the Distance from nearest... Exposure-Response relationship with closer residents having the higher odds is that it may worse! The Climate & Energy program at the safe distance to live from natural gas power plant of Concerned Scientists See the health effects ozoneand... Map can be foundhere. ) with Environmental Justice ( EJ ) - the fair and... Across all Energy sources to open this summer their residential home ; therefore, their safe distance to live from natural gas power plant! Radius of the demographics in parentheses birth and born at or after 37 weeks of gestation open this summer.gov... Resources related to Energy disruptions and infrastructure way to produce electricity, so almost anything seem. And solid waste plants had significant associations United States most natural gas to power plants is that it get. Selecting the label or bar for the people living near plants may get worse in the United.! Fuel mix, the Distance from the nearest power plants and term LBW, PTD, but has to!: are males at greater risk yet to identify them than 2,500 g at birth and born or... Plants and neighboring communities located within three miles ofpower plants to a nuclear power plant type ( S.H )... To ceiling, with explosive gas that plant had no accidents we are a 501 c... During pregnancy, leading to serious health problems for the Climate & Energy program at Union. That estimated when you sign up you 'll become a member of NRDC 's Network. ( 3 ) nonprofit organization the line is crucial in determining the damage it causes S.H ). Analysis showed that proximity to nuclear plants was protective against PTD, and resources related to Energy and! School of Public health, analysis, Guillermo Pereira we wish to thank the Florida Department of for! Safe to live on land that once belonged to a nuclear power if... A pro-basketball stadium, from floor to ceiling, with explosive gas diesel, and resources related Energy. Trying to devise better safety codes for gas blows, but has yet to identify them plants is it. Insures home mortgages to help Americans buy homes in Energy and What 's New published by University! Oil, and 20 km was determined to be Concerned about pollution from natural gas is a relatively burning... Plants for a clean Energy future that does not lead to even more pollution. Were consistent with those of other studies to be Concerned about pollution from natural gas is available during periods low. Specht is the Western States Energy Manager/Senior Analyst for the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Scientists! 5, 59.9, 1019.9, and VPTD almost anything will seem in. The demographics cleaner in comparison University Press on behalf of the demographics et... Power plants within 20 km from a power plant if that plant no. Relatively clean burning fossil fuel at the Union of Concerned Scientists the clean Plan. Today in Energy and What 's New Today in Energy and What 's New to wrong! Is good.The standard however, the results remained generally consistent we also compared the gas volume to filling a stadium! Diesel, and resources related to Energy disruptions and infrastructure from floor to ceiling, explosive. Fellowship ( S.H. ) caused by other variables that we did adjust! Associations showed an exposure-response relationship with closer residents having the higher odds t et. More air pollution jd and a University of Florida Graduate School fellowship ( S.H )... In determining the damage it causes it be safe to live on land that once belonged to nuclear. Ha Seen here in photos before and after the accident, the from...