Mercury is a trace contaminant of most coal. The poison has been getting out, too. Studies by the Environmental Protection Agency have found that coal-fired boilers are the biggest U.S. source of mercury pollution. They release some 40 tons of the metal into the air each year—or roughly one-third of U.S. mercury pollution from all sources. A new study finds that China’s reliance on coal burning has made that nation a world leader in mercury emissions.
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