Concerns Mount as Eskom’s Coal-fired Pollution Contributes to 330 Annual Deaths

The South African state-owned power company, Eskom, has reported that pollution graduated from its coal-fired plants, which encompass over 80% of the nation's power supply, is attributed to the annual death of 330 citizens. This revelation, derived from Eskom’s research, jars with several independent reports that postulate the death toll to fall between 650 and 2,000 per annum.

There is a mounting tide of nationwide discontentment, with environmental activists raising their voices against proposed plans by Eskom and the government to potentially decelerate the planned closures of these plants in order to counteract severe power outages that prove detrimental to the economy.

Prior plans by Eskom aimed to retire approximately 25% of its power generation capacity, translating to 11,300 megawatts of coal-fired power by 2030. However, recent findings from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air highlight the potential repercussions of suspending these plans, suggesting it could result in up to 15,000 additional casualties.

The health impacts of extending the life of its power stations have not yet been studied by Eskom, with the company acknowledging that the extent of health costs, premature mortalities, and morbidity can vary substantially depending on the methodology and pollutants considered.

The company assures however, that should it continue adhering to the planned closures by 2030, the emission of particulate matter will decrease by 51% while sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides will decrease by 22% and 28% respectively, compared to figures from 2021.

The widely recognized pollutants are known to cause an array of health complications ranging from respiratory disease and lung cancer to heart attacks and strokes. Furthermore, Eskom, as the world's largest emitter of sulfur dioxide, contributes to over two-fifths of South Africa's greenhouse gas emissions according to government data.