The hidden costs of fossil fuels – and biofuels, too

According to the Christian Science Monitor, a new report by the National Research Council says the “hidden” costs of “energy production with fossil fuels in the United States amounted to $120 billion,” which includes “negative impact of air pollution on health, but doesn’t include the effects of mercury emitted by coal- fired plants on wildlife and people, harm done to ecosystems by air pollution, or the climate-warming effects of carbon emissions.” According to CSM, however, “climate considerations aside, damages wrought by ethanol made from corn were usually similar to, or even slightly worse, than damages from gasoline. That’s because of the extra energy needed to convert corn to biofuel.”

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