130 million tons of coal ash per year

The problem of the leftover toxic waste that results from burning coal came to the forefront last year after a massive spill of "coal ash" in Kingston, TN. The television show 60 minutes does some more digging and provides more reasons for us to kick our addiction to coal:

(CBS)  We burn so much coal in this country for electricity that every year that process generates 130 million tons of waste. Most of it is coal ash, and it contains some nasty stuff. Environmental scientists tell us that the concentrations of mercury, arsenic, lead and other toxic metals are considerably higher in coal ash than in ordinary soil. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/10/01/60minutes/main5356202.shtml

You can check out the video here at the link above. If you agree that we don't need more coal, you can help by signing our petition to stop Duke Energy's energy rate hike to support a massive new coal plant at Cliffside, NC: http://ncconservationnetwork1.org/campaign/dukeratehike