Turkey is planning to double its coal power capacity in four years, the third largest investment in the polluting fossil fuel in the world, health campaigners have warned.
The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) today called on the European Union to promote sustainable development in Turkey and end lending for new coal projects.
Air pollution from existing coal plants already costs Turkey up to €3.6 billion per year in covering health costs caused by coal. That would be significantly increased by the new projects.
The effects of coal air pollution exposure include premature death, chronic lung disease and heart conditions, the report, The Unpaid Health Bill – How coal power plants in Turkey make us sick, has found.
EU member state Poland is planning the tenth largest investment in coal in the world. Weak draft EU rules for coal plant emissions could result in 71,000 deaths and €52 billion of health costs across Europe in the decade to come, according to separate research published today in The Guardian.
The Turkish investment will also lock in hazardous emissions for more than 40 years, according to HEAL. CO2 emissions from coal contribute to climate change.
Turkish government targets said electricity generation from domestic coal (lignite + hard coal) will be 60 billion kW (60,000 MW) until the end of 2019.