Aerosolized Coal Fly Ash: Risk Factor for COPD and Respiratory Disease

Aim: Aerosolized coal fly ash (CFA) from unfiltered exhaust by coal-burning utilities is a significant
contributor to ambient air pollution in India and China. Evidence is consistent with aerosolized CFA
also being the main particulate-matter jet-sprayed into the troposphere for covert geoengineering
purposes. Members of the public chronically exposed to aerosolized CFA are likely to have an
increased incidence of respiratory disease, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Our objective is to review the multiple chemical constituents of aerosolized CFA in connection with
their potentiality to cause COPD and respiratory disease.
Methods: We review the interdisciplinary medical, public health, and scientific literature.
Results: Tropospheric geoengineering is and has been undertaken since the beginning of the 21st
century, with increasing frequency and duration, without public discussion and without disclosure of
the particulate matter composition being placed into the air we breathe, or its effects on biota including
humans. Published data is consistent with the primary constituent being CFA, the toxic waste-product
of coal-burning. We review the medical/scientific literature that bears on the health risks posed by
particulate matter, and especially CFA, aerosolized in industrial settings and in the troposphere during
geoengineering activities and to consider in particular the potential consequences on chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and respiratory disease.
Conclusion: Aerosolized CFA, a particularly hazardous form of deliberate air pollution. Ultrafine
particles and nanoparticles found in coal fly ash can be inhaled into the lungs and produce many toxic
effects including decreased host defenses, tissue inflammation, altered cellular redox balance toward
oxidation, and genotoxicity. Oxidative stress and chronic inflammation can predispose to chronic lung
disease. Recognition and public disclosure of the adverse health effects of geoengineering activities
taking place in our skies, and their concomitant cessation will be necessary to prevent an everwidening
epidemic of COPD and other respiratory illnesses.