Coal plants are known to be one of the leading sources of greenhouse gasses. According to the International Energy Agency, coal plants make up 44% of greenhouse gases from energy production globally. The agency also added that phasing out coal plants will help reach the goals for reducing emissions.

When Ontario shut down 6 coal plants in 2014, emissions from coal plants in Canada dropped from 15% to 8.4%. The countrywide phase-out could even reduce these numbers.

Climate change isn’t the only reason for transitioning to a cleaner source of energy. Coal plants are also known to bring hazardous effects to the human population. They can worsen conditions such as chronic and acute health in some individuals and even contribute to death in some people.

Phasing out coal has been progressing slowly even with all its environmental and health impacts. This is because humans still rely on energy. Thus, if coal plants were to be phased out, there would be thousands of people that will end up jobless.

There needs to be a good transition from coal to renewable energy. The communities and workers that will be affected by this shift should be well supported to make this possible.