Group of health bodies says tackling climate change and air pollution linked to coal would improve health and reduce NHS costs

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Groups representing Britain’s 600,000 doctors and health professionals say it is “imperative” to phase out coal rapidly to improve health and reduce NHS costs.



The doctors and nurses say tackling outdoor air pollution from traffic and power stations would cut climate emissions, reduce air pollution, and deliver a powerful boost to the nation’s health.

“Climate change and air pollution are both major health threats,” says the UK Health Alliance on Climate Change in a report. “They share a common driver: the combustion of fossil fuels. Pollution from coal plants alone costs the UK as much as £3.1bn each year in human health impacts.”

The group of 15 health bodies includes seven royal colleges of medicine and the British Medical Association.

Pollution from coal plants causes many serious health conditions including stroke, coronary heart disease and lung cancer. It disproportionally affects children and kills more people than road accidents , says the report.

The government has said it intends to phase out coal power plants by 2025 but the doctors say they are alarmed that no consultation papers looking at how this could be achieved have been published in more than a year.

“Ending the use of coal is a simple, no-regrets public health intervention. The rapid phase-out of coal fired stations is an imperative first step. Coal is the most carbon-intensive source of power generation, and is a key focus for reducing the risks of climate change.

“In the UK, burning coal is linked to 1,600 premature deaths, 68,000 additional days of medication, 363,266 working days lost and more than 1m incidents of lower respiratory symptoms,” says the report.

It urges politicians not to tackle air pollution and climate individually, as has been done in the past. “The UK has witnessed ... policies that encouraged the use of diesel cars which inadvertently worsened air quality. Considering air pollution and climate change together can limit adverse health effects.

“Some strategies can be good for both air quality and climate change, for instance wind, solar and tidal energy. Acting on ones that are beneficial to both is advantageous to health. Indeed, joining up policies on health, air pollution and climate change can offset the costs of climate mitigation policies through the health benefits that they bring.”



Air pollution is the second biggest public health threat in the UK after smoking and kills 40,000 people a year in Britain, said Prof John Middleton, president of the Faculty of Public Health. “Coal-fired energy is particularly damaging through its invisible particulates and because it is a driver of climate change,” he said.

“The phase-out of coal use is an essential step towards creating a sustainable energy policy for the UK,” said Dr Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of the Lancet medical journal. “It is also a vital co-benefit for health - ending coal use will deliver long-lasting health and dividends for the British population. Life expectancies will be prolonged, disease and disabilities reduced, and future risks to health diminished. This is an opportunity to be seized.”

Jonathan Griggs, professor of paediatric respiratory and environmental medicine and fellow of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health said that children were particularly vulnerable to burning coal.

“Air pollution from burning coal has been linked to low birth weight and pre-term delivery as a result of maternal exposure during pregnancy,” he said. “The phase-out of coal is a double win for tackling the twin health threats of air pollution and climate change.”

“Tackling air pollution and climate change will have numerous health benefits but it requires a joined-up approach from government to ensure the health impacts are better recognised and fully realised,” said Janet Davies, the Royal College of Nursing’s chief executive and general secretary.